To The Point - Cybersecurity

Sheera Frenkel covers cybersecurity from San Francisco for the New York Times. Previously, she spent over a decade in the Middle East as a foreign correspondent.Sheera previously worked for the Times of London, McClatchy and NPR, where her fluency in Hebrew and her conversational Arabic helped land stories. She has said that her time as a foreign correspondent aids her coverage of cybersecurity: People are always speaking different languages and their motivations are often unclear.Frenkel and her co-author Cecilia Kang were part of the team of investigative journalists recognized as 2019 Finalists for the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting. The team also won the George Polk Award for National Reporting and the Gerald Loeb Award for Investigative Reporting.

For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e149

This week we catch up with Dustin Moody, a Mathematician in the NIST Computer Security Division who shares insights on how he found his way to NIST and cryptography through a love of elliptic curves and their beauty in numbers and patterns. Learn more about the impending quantum revolution and what that means for encryption and what (as well as how long) it takes to develop a post-quantum cryptography standard (hint: it takes several years!). And he gives us a peak into the future of crypto agility and what it's like working with other countries and their approach to crypto. For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e148

Dive into the world of cryptocurrency with this week's guest Jeff Roberts, executive editor at Decrypt and author of the book "Kings of Crypto: One Start-Up's Quest to Take Cryptocurrency Out of Silicon Valley and On To Wall Street". For those that are wondering, Jeff shares that cryptocurrency today is definitely mainstream and while it is still a speculative investment - with big banks getting into the game it may not stay that way for long. (HINT: in the next 10 years, we just may have an FDIC version for cryptocurrency!) He also shares how cryptocurrency such as bitcoin is serving as a nefarious and anonymous currency scapegoat for endeavors such as Silk Road and ransomware, however there are many fantastic applications it can also be used for and countries such as the US/Silicon Valley, South Korea, Switzerland and even China are helping to drive this forward. (Did you know bitcoin is legal tender in El Salvador today?!) And for those interested in his follow-up book, it just may be about currency wars. Stay tuned for more. Learn more about "Kings of Crypto"

For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e147

This week we chat on the complexities and opportunities smart cities can deliver in the US and around the globe with guest Chris Teale, reporter at Smart Cities Dive. He's spent years meeting with government and community leaders on the growth of smart cities and shares thoughts on just how fluid defining what a smart city is today. Learn which cities around the world are leading in the smart city evolution and how a patchwork of state-by-state laws and regulatory frameworks help and/or hinder progress. As well as examples of US cities you may not have expected that can share best practices and lessons learned with cities large and small across the country to help get them on the path to better utilizing technology and digitization to improve essential services (such as trash pick-up) and quality of life. He also shares insights of the 'hackers as city consultant' trend and how a federal government playbook for cities could help more cities get smarter, faster. For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e146

This week we are joined by World Econopmic Forum's Head of Governance and Trust Daniel Dobrygowski and Forcepoint Chief Legal Officer John Holmes for a discussion on the changing role of leadership when cyber is the cost of doing business. They share insights from the recently published World Economic Forum report "Principles for Board Governance of Cyber Risk" and historical points in time that today's leaders can learn from in navigating business through the rapid advancements and innovations of the 4th Industrial Revolution. Read the WEF report here: https://www.weforum.org/reports/principles-for-board-governance-of-cyber-risk For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e145

Buckle up for this week's episode because it is quite a ride! Greg Crabb, founder of TenEight Cyber and former CISO for the United States Postal Service shares insights from his more than 25 years in law enforcement and bringing cyber criminals to justice. And hear perspective on CISO best practices for a 630k+ employee organization with 43k facilities and 160 million daily delivery points and how he took a 40 person cyber team to 600 in just a few years. Also learn how his team partnered with CISA to secure the 2020 U.S. election, how postal inspectors serve as first responders (hint: anthrax vs cornstarch), the importance of identifying and quantifying risk for your organization today and the DevSecOps opportunity ahead. For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e144

This week we have our first guest that successfully swam the English Channel – Sue Daley, Director of Technology and Innovation at techUK. Hear insights from Sue on the mental focus it takes to swim for 23 hours straight, how a singular national vision has helped the UK address the cyber challenge, the opportunity for US and UK collaboration on cyber issues, and key considerations for regulating AI. Sue also dives into the opportunity to embrace AI/ML for addressing online threats, why she's optimistic for the cyber path ahead (hint: collaboration is key!) and why it will be good to finally have a "queue for the loo". For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e143

This week we pick back up for part two with CERT Division Director Greg Touhill. He shares insights on the mindset change in recent years on the importance in understanding risk and high value assets and where they reside. He also provides perspective for defining resilience, including taking a punch and keep on going, as well as steps for getting ahead of today's ransomware threat run amok by buying down the risk. To learn more about CERT visit CERT.org. For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e142

This week Greg Touhill, Director of CERT Division, joins the podcast to share insights on CERT's history as the birthplace of cyber and culture of innovation at the center of the cyber universe. He also dives into the importance of the development of a Software Bill of Materials (SBOM), what happens when national leaders shine a light on cyber, why talent with breadth and depth is critical helping move the federal government cyber needle and the building blocks for standing up the federal government's first CISO office. To learn more about CERT visit CERT.org. For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e141

Cybersecurity is an industry rife with paradoxes and trying to get ahead of today's vast threat landscape can feel like an endless loop of Penrose steps. This week's guest Marilise de Villiers, co-founder and CEO of ROAR Consulting & Coaching shares insights on how to break the vicious cycle in an industry where the burn out struggle is real - particularly during the last year as the line between work and home vanished. Marilise shares details for building a personal toolkit for success that not only helps individuals build resilience but can also help organizations shape cultures that support security-first mindsets that truly make your people the strongest front line of security defense. Key to success? Defining what good looks like and redefining winning when winning is seemingly impossible. For links and resources discussed in this episode, please visit our show notes at https://www.forcepoint.com/govpodcast/e140