To The Point - Cybersecurity

This week on the podcast Bobby Chesney, James Baker Chair at the University of Texas School of Law, and co-founder of the awesome Lawfare.com blog and co-host of the National Security Law podcast, joins us for a discussion on all things cyber legal policy and regulations - and it is fun! We chat about the recent Viasat satellite hack that served dual-purposes for military application and disruption of industries (for example, impacting wind turbines!). He also shares perspective on cyber versus kinetic attacks, space wars, space law vs maritime law parallels and the geography of cyber. Want to learn more about cyber law and policy? Check out Chesney's free eCasebook on Cybersecurity Law, Policy, and Institutions here: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3547103

Bobby Chesney, James Baker Chair in Rule of Law and World Affairs at UT Austin

Bobby Chesney holds the James Baker Chair and also serves as the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the University of Texas School of Law. In addition, he is the Director of the Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law, a university-wide research unit bridging across disciplines to improve understanding of international security issues. Professor Chesney is a co-founder and contributor to www.lawfareblog.com, the leading source for analysis, commentary, and news relating to law and national security. He also co-hosts the National Security Law Podcast and contributes to the National Security Law Lectures series (which he co-founded with Matt Waxman). In 2021, Professor Chesney was appointed to the Cybersecurity Advisory Committee for the U.S. government's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e178

Michael Daniel, President and CEO of Cyber Threat Alliance joins the podcast this week and dives right into the latest developing cyber implications resulting from the Ukraine conflict, as well as longer term considerations on Russian cyber companies impacted by sanctions. He also shares perspective on the differing views of cyber as a nuisance vs public/safety problem, the opportunity to combat cyber collectively, CISA's Shields Up program and organizations sustaining a high level of vigilance, and the STIX information sharing platform. Michael Daniel, CEO of Cyber Threat Alliance Michael leads the CTA team and oversees the organization's operations. Prior to joining the CTA in February 2017, Michael served from June 2012 to January 2017 as Special Assistant to President Obama and Cybersecurity Coordinator on the National Security Council Staff. In this role, Michael led the development of national cybersecurity strategy and policy, and ensured that the US government effectively partnered with the private sector, non-governmental organizations, and other nations.

For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e177

This week we are joined by Herb Lin, Senior Research Scholar, CISAC and Hank J. Holland Fellow, Hoover Institution at Stanford University – and author of the book Cyber Threats and Nuclear Weapons. Herb shares his deep expertise in cyber policy and security to shed light on key questions that should be on everyone's mind, such as "Why are innovation and cybersecurity opposites" and "Why are we always behind in cybersecurity?". He also breaks down why complexity is the enemy of security, cyber war vs nuclear war, three roads to ruin, and the role of a Chief Luddite Officer. Prepare for your mind to be blown!

Herb Lin, Senior Research Scholar at Stanford's Center for International Security and Cooperation

Dr. Herb Lin is senior research scholar for cyber policy and security at the Center for International Security and Cooperation and Hank J. Holland Fellow in Cyber Policy and Security at the Hoover Institution, both at Stanford University. His research interests relate broadly to policy-related dimensions of cybersecurity and cyberspace, and he is particularly interested in the use of offensive operations in cyberspace as instruments of national policy and in the security dimensions of information warfare and influence operations on national security. In addition to his positions at Stanford University, he is Chief Scientist, Emeritus for the Computer Science and Telecommunications Board, National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academies, where he served from 1990 through 2014 as study director of major projects on public policy and information technology, and Adjunct Senior Research Scholar and Senior Fellow in Cybersecurity (not in residence) at the Saltzman Institute for War and Peace Studies in the School for International and Public Affairs at Columbia University; and a member of the Science and Security Board of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists. In 2016, he served on President Obama's Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity. Prior to his NRC service, he was a professional staff member and staff scientist for the House Armed Services Committee (1986-1990), where his portfolio included defense policy and arms control issues. He received his doctorate in physics from MIT.

For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e176

This week's podcast guest Rich Itri, Chief Innovation Officer at ECI, did the heavy work of reading the SEC's 250-page proposal on Cybersecurity Risk Management, Strategy, Governance, and Incident Disclosure and shares perspective on what may be ahead for public companies that are subject to the reporting requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. As it goes into comment period through May 9, 2022, many are on standby for the outcome of the proposed cyber incident reporting timeline of four days after a material breach. Which, of course leaves one to wonder, just what are we considering 'material' these days? You don't want to miss this week's episode as Rich shares deep insights from his more than 20 years on the financial services security frontlines.

Rich Itri, Chief Innovation Officer at ECI

Rich Itri is the Chief Innovation Officer at ECI. Rich has over 22 years of IT executive experience, spending his entire career managing IT within the financial services industry. Prior to joining ECI, Rich was Managing Director and Chief Technology Officer for PJT Partners, a boutique investment bank, Principal and Chief Information Officer for Sky Road and held Chief Information Officer positions at Arrowhawk Capital Partners and Arbalet Capital Partners. Over the years, Rich has developed and managed innovative, business aligned platforms, that drive revenue and operational efficiencies. Rich holds positions on several Advisory Boards and volunteers his time to help non-profits leverage technology.

For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e175

Matt Bianco, President at Fedway Consulting, joins the podcast this week to deep dive into the electric vehicle world, how it's evolving, challenges being address (such as charging stations!) and government plans to help advance electric vehicles within the government fleet and with consumers across the U.S. One of the big questions with electric vehicles are the cyber vulnerabilities as charging stations connect to the internet to process charging time and transactions. With many asking, just how big a threat are we walking about as tens of thousands of new charging stations come online the next 5-10 years? Join the podcast to find out!

Matt Bianco, President at Fedway Consulting Matt is a thought leader within the US Federal Government ecosystem related to Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging integration which includes strong knowledge of POV/GOV programs (workplace/fleet), hardware/software solutions, infrastructure, policy, etc. With partnerships across the industry including ChargePoint, Apollo Sunguard (SDVOSB), Beam Global, Freewire, etc, Matt has the ability to assist in formulating a plan that will cover every aspect of executing a flawless and easy Federal EV charging program. Other focuses include CyberSecurity initiatives and software solutions.

For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e174

Joining us this week is Avi Bashan, CTO of Kovrr sharing perspective on quantifying the elusive risk elements of business today. Great insights he shares on new methodologies and tools security teams, Risk Officers and others can leverage today to start putting risk into an understandable and quantifiable business perspective. And no conversation on risk is complete without discussion on cyber insurance - and we take a quick trip from the insurance industry's beginnings through to present day cyber insurance.

Avi Bashan, Chief Technology Officer Avi is CTO at Kovrr and leads engineering and research efforts. He started his career in an elite Israeli intelligence technology unit. Following his service, Avi advised Fortune500 companies on cybersecurity. Following his consulting period, Avi led research and development efforts at Lacoon Mobile security focusing on discovering novel new attacks and building state of the art malware detection engines. Lacoon Mobile Security was acquired by Check Point. Avi is a lecturer at Bar Ilan University's Business School and holds a B.Med.Sc from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e173

Nick Espinosa, Chief Security Fanatic, at Security Fanatics joins the podcast this week to share perspective from his many interviews with Ukraine government members and others on-the-ground in Ukraine. He also shares insights on cyber attacks against Ukraine since 2014 and how the landscape continues to shift during the current conflict, including potential cyberattack leakage outside the region. And he dives into the critical communications elements at play including Internet access that is enabling those on the ground to communicate. He closes the podcast with four recommendations for companies looking to strengthen their security defenses amidst today's uncertain cyber landscape. Be sure to follow Nick on Twitter @NickAEsp for continuing updates from those on the ground in the Ukraine.

Nick Espinosa, Chief Security Fanatic For over 25 years, Nick has been on a first name basis with computers. Since the age of 9 he's been building computers and programming in multiple languages. Landing his first IT job at age 15, Nick founded Windy City Networks, Inc at 19 which was acquired in 2013 by BSSi2. In 2015 Nick created Security Fanatics, a Cybersecurity/Cyberwarfare outfit dedicated to designing custom Cyberdefense strategies for medium to enterprise corporations. An expert in cybersecurity and network infrastructure, Nick has consulted with clients ranging from the small business owners up to Fortune 100 level companies. Nick has designed, built, and implemented multinational networks, encryption systems, and multi-tiered infrastructures as well as small business environments. He is passionate about emerging technology and enjoys creating, breaking, and fixing test environments.

For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e172

Joe Uchill, senior reporter at SC Magazine, joins us on the podcast this week to share perspective from his ongoing reporting on the cyber implications from the Ukraine conflict. We cover a bevy of themes including the level of cyber versus kinetic attacks, the "IT Army" of Ukraine and impact of decentralized hacking volunteers, Conti ransomware group woes and the globalism of the criminal economy, CISA Shields Up guidance and navigating through opportunistic criminals that invariably take advantage of a crisis. And he explains the Evel Knievel School of Storytelling approach.

Joe Uchill, Senior Reporter at SC Magazine

Long time cybersecurity reporter who has written for places like SC Magazine, Axios and Motherboard. I founded Axios' Codebook cybersecurity newsletter and also wrote cybersecurity newsletters for The Hill and Christian Science Monitor. Newsletters are something of a specialty. In his spare time, he works on coding projects to bolster journalism. Previously ran a Washington D.C. area group of hackers, analysts and reporters who collaborated until COVID-19 put an end to in-person meetings.

For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e171

Petko Stoyanov, Chief Technology Officer for Global Governments at Forcepoint

Petko Stoyanov serves as Forcepoint's Chief Technology Officer for Global Governments. He focuses on strategy, technology and go-to-market for enterprise-focused solutions across the government verticals in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom, and the United States. Petko is an experienced cyber security leader who specializes in establishing information security programs and driving security maturity in technology through and experience specialized in aerospace, technology, and cloud. He has prior experience as an Information Security Manager and Security Architect leading and designing secure tamper resistant security systems and advanced multi-level security systems.

Petko's LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/petko-stoyanov/

For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e170

Dr. Samantha Ravich, Chairman for the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation at Foundation for Defense of Democracies joins the podcast this week. She shares insights from her many years on the geopolitical and economic front lines of cyber, and work with many renowned government leaders, on developing a plan of action to address today's cyber threat landscape and looming threat against critical infrastructure and essential services. She also provides perspective on building resiliency, what we can learn from natural disasters relative to cyber attacks, as well as the opportunity and impact of states creating and driving their own continuity of the economy plans.

Dr. Samantha Ravich, Chairman, Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation, Foundation for Defense of Democracies ---- Dr. Samantha Ravich is the chairman of FDD's Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation and its Transformative Cyber Innovation Lab and the principal investigator on FDD's Cyber-Enabled Economic Warfare project. She is also a senior advisor at FDD, serving on the advisory boards of FDD's Center on Economic and Financial Power (CEFP) and Center on Military and Political Power (CMPP). Samantha serves as a commissioner on the congressionally mandated Cyberspace Solarium Commission and as a member of the U.S. Secret Service's Cyber Investigation Advisory Board. Samantha served as deputy national security advisor for Vice President Cheney, focusing on Asian and Middle East Affairs as well as on counter-terrorism and counter-proliferation. Following her time at the White House, Samantha was the Republican co-chair of the congressionally mandated National Commission for Review of Research and Development Programs in the United States Intelligence Community. Most recently, she served as vice chair of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board (PIAB) and co-chair of the Artificial Intelligence Working Group of the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board. She is advisor on cyber and geo-political threats and trends to numerous technology, manufacturing, and services companies; a managing partner of A2P, a social data analytics firm; and on the board of directors for International Game Technology (NYSE:IGT).

Her book, Marketization and Democracy: East Asian Experiences (Cambridge University Press) is used as a basic textbook in international economics, political science, and Asian studies college courses. Samantha is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and advises the U.S. Intelligence Community and the Department of Defense. She is a frequent keynote speaker on: What Corporate Boards need to know about Cyber Security and Warfare; The Longer-Term Trends in International Security; and the Future of Intelligence Collection and Analysis. Samantha received her PhD in Policy Analysis from the RAND Graduate School and her MCP/BSE from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

--- https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-ravich-7b5aa08b/

For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e169