Three Buddy Problem (Security Conversations)

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Symmetry Systems executive Claude Mandy joins the show to discuss a career in the security trenches, life as a CISO during the WannaCry crisis, and first principles around data security. We dig into the emerging Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) category and how it extends the Zero Trust philosophy to hybrid cloud data stores.

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Abhishek Arya is director of engineering at Google, overseeing open source and supply chain security efforts that include OSS-Fuzz, SLSA, GUAC and OSV DB. In this episode, Arya talks about some early success experimenting with AI and LLMs on fuzzing and vulnerability management, the industry's over-pivoting on SBOMs, regulations and liability for software vendors, and the long road ahead for securing software supply chains.

Patrick Howell O’Neill is the cybersecurity senior editor for MIT Technology Review. In this out-of-band episode of the show, Patrick joins Ryan to discuss his latest scoop (https://securityconversations.com/on-disrupting-gov-malware-attacks/) on Google Project Zero's visibility into malware used in a Western .gov counter-terrorism operation, the tricky nature of attributing nation-state backed attacks, Apple's iOS becoming a hot target and the controversies surrounding all of these conversations. Follow Patrick on Twitter (https://twitter.com/howelloneill).

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io/) and FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run/) - Protecting devices from emerging firmware and hardware threats using modern artificial intelligence. Dan Lorenc and a team or ex-Googlers raised $55 million in early-stage funding to build technology to secure software supply chains. On this episode of the show, Dan joins Ryan to talk about the different faces of the supply chain problem, the security gaps that will never go away, the decision to raise an unusually large early-stage funding round, and how the U.S. government's efforts will speed up technology innovation.

The 'Three Buddy Problem' Podcast Episode 3: Former NSA computer scientist Dave Aitel (Immunity Inc., Cordyceps Systems) joins Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade for a frank discussion on the OpenSSH unauthenticated remote code execution vulnerability and the challenges around patching and exploitation, the CISA 'secure-by-design' pledge and its impact on software vendor practices, Microsoft lobbying and the CSRB report, and changing face of government's attempts at cybersecurity regulations. We discuss the disruption caused by political changes and the potential implications for cybersecurity policies, impact from the Supreme Court Chevron ruling, security regulations and the challenges of writing laws for future technology, the role of CISA and its accomplishments, the debate around offensive cyber operations and the responsibility of companies like Google in addressing vulnerabilities. The need for clear separation between counterterrorism and espionage operations is highlighted, as well as the importance of understanding both defensive and offensive perspectives. Costin Raiu is on vacation.

Sharon Anolik, President and Founder of Privacy Panacea, talks about her work advising corporate clients on privacy and data protection issues, the looming chaos surrounding the European Union’s GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and the role she plays on ‘Silicon Valley.’

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Dakota Cary is a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Global China Hub, conducting research on China’s efforts to develop its hacking capabilities, artificial-intelligence and cybersecurity research at Chinese universities, the People’s Liberation Army’s efforts to automate software vulnerability discovery, and new policies to improve China’s cybersecurity-talent pipeline. In this episode, Cary expands on a new report -- 'Sleight of Hand' -- that delves into the changing legal landscape for vulnerability disclosure in China, the PRC's weaponization of software vulnerabilities, advanced threat actors in China and that infamous Bloomberg 'rice grain' spy chip story.

Chief Information Security Officer at Fox News, Fox Business, and Fox Television John Terrill joins the podcast to talk about life in the CISO trenches and makes a bold prediction that could significantly change the cybersecurity narrative.

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Rishi Bhargava and the team of entrepreneurs behind Demisto’s $560 million exit are back at it with a new startup building technology in the customer identity market. The new company, called Descope, raised an abnormally large $53 million seed-stage funding round with ambitious plans to take on rivals big and small in the customer identity and authentication space. On this episode of the podcast, Bhargava joins Ryan to talk about the VC funding landscape, the confusing 'identity' category, the responsibilities of vendors in the identity ecosystem, the emergence of Microsoft and Google as big security players, and some thoughts on the Israeli startup scene.

Netskope security chief Lamont Orange joins the show to chat about the changing role of the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), managing security as a business enabler, the cybersecurity skills shortage, and his own unique approach to security leadership.

Mobile security pioneer Collin Mulliner talks about the early days of hacking PalmOS devices, the current state of smartphone platforms, his work on securing self driving cars, and why he built and open-sourced a firmware analyzer tool.

Charles Nwatu is an engineering manager in Netflix's Security, Technology Assurance & Risk organization. He joins Ryan on the show to talk about a career pivot from U.S. gov service into cybersecurity in Silicon Valley, the exciting parts of compliance and risk management, and why newcomers should consider jobs in SOCs to kickstart security careers.

Latacora Security founder Thomas Ptacek joins the podcast to weigh in on the cybersecurity skills shortage, his approach to recruiting and hiring, and what needs to be done to address diversity in the industry.

Cybersecurity journalist and author Andy Greenberg joins the podcast to talk about his career as a journalist, the ins-and-outs of negotiating a big story with sources, the intricacies of writing a good book, and some of his biggest stories to date.

Founder and CEO at MKACyber Mischel Kwon joins the podcast to address the state of the SOC (Security Operations Center) and how businesses should deal with issues around excessive alerts, incident response times, and outdated metrics.

Josh Schwartz, aka FuzzyNop, oversees offensive security, product engineering, and security engagement functions at Verizon Media (soon to be Yahoo). He shares insights on red-teaming, overcoming the adversarial relationship between red/blue teams. chasing the "feeling" of being secure, and why there's a need for more empathy in cybersecurity. (Episode sponsored by Eclypsium (https://eclypsium.com))

Computer security researcher and CEO of Luta Security, Katie Moussouris. talks about her life in the penetration testing trenches, advocating responsible security research, building bug bounty programs and the challenges of succeeding as a woman in the industry.

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Cenlar FSB security chief Jason Shockey joins the show to discuss the task of securing a financial institution, pivoting from a career in the military to the private sector, the current state of the job market, managing risk from APTs, and the mission of his My Cyberpath project.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 25: An update on Romania’s cancelled election, the implications of TikTok on democratic processes, and the broader issues around surveillance capitalism and micro-targeting. Plus, news on Turla piggybacking on cybercriminal malware to hit Ukraine, the return of Careto and the absence of IOCs, Claroty report on an Iran-linked cyberweapon targeting critical infrastructure, ethical considerations in cyberwarfare, and the implications of quantum computing on security and cryptocurrencies. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine).

Thinkst founder and CEO Haroon Meer joins Ryan Naraine on the show to talk about building a successful cybersecurity company without venture capital investment, fast-moving attack surfaces and the never-ending battle to mitigate memory corruption issues.

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Seth Spergel is managing partner at Merlin Ventures, where he is responsible for identifying cutting-edge companies for Merlin to partner with and invest in. In this episode, Seth talks about helping startups target US federal markets, the current state of deal sizes and valuations, and the red-hot sectors in cybersecurity ripe for venture investment.

Flashpoint chief executive Josh Lefkowitz talks about how his previous work as a counter-terrorism analyst underscored the value of contextual threat-intelligence, his company's approach to gathering and analyzing data, and his mission to be an extension of a client's security team.

Thinkst founder Haroon Meer talks about building a security company from scratch without VC funding, using Canaries to pinpoint signs of intruder activity, advancements in security research, and the state of the bug bounty market.

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Dr Sergey Bratus is a Research Associate Professor of Computer Science at Dartmouth College and a program manager at DARPA. In this episode, he discusses his pioneering work on securing parsers and patching long-forgotten devices. He also puts the AI hype into context and showers praise on the labor-of-love "citizen science" of hacking all the things.

Chief Information Security Officer at Turner Broadcasting Pete Chronis discusses his new book on solving the cybersecurity conundrum, the day-to-day grind of securing a global media organization, and the role of the CISO in the modern world.

Dino Dai Zovi, co-founder and CTO of Capsule8, joins the podcast to talk about the fallout from the Meltdown and Spectre vulnerabilities, the transition from security research to managing a VC-funded start-up and reminisce about his time as a famous Pwn2Own MacBook hacker.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 28: In this episode, we explore the ongoing challenges of threat actor naming in cybersecurity and the confusion caused by a lack of standardization, methodological inconsistencies and skewed, marketing-driven incentives. Plus, the US Treasury/BeyondTrust hack, the surge in 0day discoveries, a new variant of the Xdr33 CIA Hive malware, and exclusive new information on the Cyberhaven Chrome extension security incident. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine).

Episode sponsors: Binarly, the supply chain security experts (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Allison Miller is founder and CEO of Cartomancy Labs and former CISO and VP of Trust at Reddit. She has spent the past 20 years scaling teams and technology at Bank of America, Google, Electronic Arts, PayPal/eBay, and Visa International. In this conversation, we discuss the convergence of security with fraud prevention and anti-abuse, the challenges and complexities in IAM implementations, the post-pandemic labor market, the evolving role of CISOs and new realities around CISO exposure to personal liability, thoughts on the 'build vs buy' debate and the nuance and dilemma of paying ransomware demands.

Founder and CEO of Wire Security, Wim Remes, joins the podcast to discuss the intricacies of penetration testing, red-teaming, bug bounty programs, and calls for defenders to embrace continuous pen-testing.

Principal and founding investor at ForgePoint Capital Cybersecurity William Lin talks about venture capital activity in the security space, sectors that are ripe for investment, missed bets on successful companies, and the cybersecurity talent shortage.

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Luta Security founder and chief executive Katie Moussouris joins the show to dish on the bug-bounty ecosystem, the abuse of hacker labor, and the common mistakes made by even the most mature security programs. A security industry pioneer, Moussouris argues for better use of bug bounty metrics to drive decisions and a heavy focus on reducing duplicate vulnerability submissions.

Justin Campbell leads Microsoft’s Offensive Research and Security Engineering (MORSE) team. He joins the show to talk about his team's discovery of a SolarWinds in-the-wild zero-day, the never-ending stream of memory safety vulnerabilities, the evolving 'shift-left' mindset and Redmond's ongoing work to reduce attack surfaces.

Sponsored by Eclypsium (https://eclypsium.com) Chris Castaldo has a fascinating career in cybersecurity. A U.S. army veteran who dabbled in tech during the early 2000s dot-com boom before settling on security, Castaldo is now CISO at Crossbeam and a decision-maker with a bird's eye view into how the should be protected. Castaldo joins Ryan on the show to talk about his new book on securing the startup, why he's the rare CISO that loves security vendor briefings and demos, and his vision of the CISO's top priorities.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 4: The boys delve into the massive AT&T call logs breach, the Snowflake incidents and the notion of shared-fate/shared responsibilities; news on fresh Apple notifications about mercenary spyware on iPhones and the effectiveness of notifications for different types of controversial targets. Plus, thoughts on Microsoft's zero-day disclosures and useless Patch Tuesday bulletins, AI-powered disinformation campaigns, and the US government's malware sharing initiative fading away. Hosts: Costin Raiu (Art of Noh), Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (SentinelLabs), Ryan Naraine (SecurityWeek).

BlackBerry security response executive Christine Gadsby joins the podcast to talk about tough decisions around shipping secure software, the challenges of securing supply chain dependencies, BlackBerry's new ransomware recovery feature, and her upcoming Black Hat 2018 presentation.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 23: Volexity founder Steven Adair joins the show to explore the significance of memory analysis and the technical challenges associated with memory dumping and forensics. We dig into Volexity’s “nearest neighbor” Wi-Fi hack discovery, gaps in EDR detection and telemetry, and some real-talk on the Volt Typhoon intrusions. We also cover news on a Firefox zero-day exploited on the Tor browser, the professionalization of ransomware, ESET's discovery of a Linux bootkit (we have a scoop on the origins of this!), Binarly research on connections to LogoFAIL, and major visibility gaps in the firmware ecosystem. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs) (SentinelLabs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) (Art of Noh) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine) (SecurityWeek). Honorary buddy: Steven Adair (https://twitter.com/sadair) (Volexity)

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) New General Manager of the Open Source Security Foundation (OpenSSF) Omkhar Arasaratnam joins Ryan for a candid conversation on the challenges surrounding open-source software security, lessons from the Log4j crisis, the value of SBOMs, and the U.S. government efforts at securing America's software supply chains.

Director of Internet Analyis at Kentik, Doug Madory, joins the podcast to shed light on the mysterious appearance of unused IPv4 space belonging to the US Department of Defense: the strange connection to a Florida company now managing the world's largest honeypot; the odd Inauguration Day timing of this discovery;, and why enterprise network defenders should pay very close attention.

AT&T Cybersecurity's Jaime Blasco talks about falling in love with security as a high-school student in Spain, finding a career path in pen-testing and offense, shifting to building defensive technologies and his current passion for exploring the value of machine learning.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 8: This week’s show digs into Microsoft’s in-the-wild zero-day woes, Patch Tuesday and the absence of IOCs, a wormable Windows TCP/IP flaw that the Chinese government knew about for months, Iran’s aggressive hacking US election targets, CrowdStrike v Qihoo360 and major problems with APT naming conventions. Hosts: Costin Raiu (Art of Noh), Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (SentinelLabs), Ryan Naraine (SecurityWeek)

Veteran cybersecurity writer Dennis Fisher joins the podcast to talk about his new journalism venture at decipher.sc, his preference for long-form writing, and the trends worth following in the security space.

Veteran security journalist Paul Roberts talks about the creation of Security Ledger, his work covering cybersecurity, the democratization of media, and hiccups with IoT legislation.

Network security pioneer Marty Roesch takes listeners on a trip down memory lane, sharing stories from the creation of Snort back in the 1990s, the startup journey of building Sourcefire into an IDS/IPS powerhouse and selling the company for $2 billion, the U.S. government killing a Check Point acquisition, and his newest adventure as chief executive at Netography.

The 'Three Buddy Problem' Podcast Episode 2: Ryan Naraine, Costin Raiu and Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade go all-in on the discussion around Google Project Zero disrupting counter-terrorism malware operations. A deep dive on disruption vs exposure, the effects of US government sanctions on private mercenary hacking companies, hypocricy and the tricky relationship between malware researchers are the intelligence community, and the lack of 'success stories' from so-called benevolent malware. We also discuss the implications of the TeamViewer breach by a skilled Russian APT, new Microsoft notifications to Midnight Blizzard victims and share thoughts on the Polyfill.io supply chain compromise.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 20: We revisit the ‘hack-back’ debate, the threshold for spying on adversaries, Palo Alto watching EDR bypass research to track threat actors, hot nuggets in Project Zero’s Clem Lecinge’s Hexacon talk, Apple’s new iOS update rebooting iPhones in law enforcement custody, the mysterious GoblinRAT backdoor, and physical ‘meatspace’ Bitcoin attacks and more details on North Korean cryptocurrency theft. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs) (SentinelLabs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) (Art of Noh) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine) (SecurityWeek).

Tim Maurer, a scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, talks about nation state-backed hacking activity and the dangers of breaking trust in the global financial system.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 26: We dive deep into the shadowy world of surveillance and cyber operations, unpacking Amnesty International's explosive report on NoviSpy, a previously unknown Android implant used against Serbian activists, and the links to Israeli forensics software vendor Cellebrite. Plus, thoughts on the US government’s controversial guidance on VPNs, Chinese reports on US intel agency hacking, TP-Link sanctions chatter, Mossad's dramatic exploding beeper operation and the ethical, legal, and security implications of escalating cyber-deterrence. Also, a mysterious BeyondTrust 0-day! Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine).

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Munich Re Ventures investment principal Sidra Ahmed Lefort joins Ryan Naraine for a frank discussion on the state of VC funding in cybersecurity, the rise (and coming correction) in the land of security 'unicorns', the massive early-stage funding rounds and what they mean, layoffs and contractions, and the places in security still ripe for innovation.

Co-founder and Chief Security Officer at Signal Sciences Zane Lackey riffs on DevOps, the almost impossible task of defending organizations from intruders, bug bounties versus penetration testing, and the pros and cons of launching a company with venture capital investment.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 35: Juanito is live from DistrictCon with notes on discussion of an elusive iOS zero-day by a company called QuaDream and Apple’s controversial removal of iCloud backup end-to-end encryption in the UK. We also cover a staggering $1.4 billion hack by the Lazarus Group against Bybit, new angles in NSA-linked cyber-espionage against China’s top universities, Chinese hacking gangs moonlighting as ransomware criminals, and Russian APTs abusing Signal’s “linked devices” feature. Plus, Costin explains Microsoft’s quantum computing breakthrough. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine).

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 27: We discuss the discovery of a Palo Alto network firewall attack and a stealthy network ed ge device backdoor (LITTLELAMB.WOOLTEA), the Cyberhaven hack and the shady world of browser extensions, and a look back at the top research projects that caught our attention in 2025. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine).

CISO and VP of Strategy at Digital Shadows Rick Holland discusses his path in the information security industry, advancements in the threat intel space, and his passion for good bar-b-que.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 34: We dig into the latest exploited Apple iPhone zero-day (USB Restricted Mode bypass), an AMD microcode flaw so serious it’s not being fully disclosed, a barrage of Patch Tuesday updates, the helpless nature of trying to defend corporate networks, Russian threat actor movements, and fresh intel from Rapid7, Volexity, and Microsoft. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine).

Facebook product security leader Collin Greene joins the show to discuss philosophies around securing code at scale, the pros and cons of relying on bug-bounty programs, the humbling lessons from being on the wrong side of a malicious hack, and why "shift-left" should be the priority for every defender.

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Rob Ragan, principal architect and security strategist at Bishop Fox, joins the show to share insights on scaling pen testing, the emergence of bug bounty programs, the value of attack surface management, and the role of AI in cybersecurity. We dig into the importance of proactive defense, the challenges of consolidating security tools, and the potential of AI in augmenting human intelligence. The conversation explores the potential of AI models and their impact on various aspects of technology and society and digs into the importance of improving model interaction by allowing more thoughtful and refined responses. We also discuss how AI can be a superpower, enabling rapid prototyping and idea generation. The discussion concludes with considerations for safeguarding AI models, including transparency, explainability, and potential regulations. Takeaways: Scaling pen testing can be challenging, and maintaining quality becomes difficult as the team grows. Bug bounty programs have been a net positive for businesses, providing valuable insights and incentivizing innovative research. Attack surface management plays a crucial role in identifying vulnerabilities and continuously monitoring an organization's security posture. Social engineering attacks, such as SIM swapping and phishing, require a multi-faceted defense strategy that includes technical controls, policies, and user education. AI has the potential to augment human intelligence and improve efficiency and effectiveness in cybersecurity. Improving model interaction by allowing more thoughtful and refined responses can enhance the user experience. Algorithms can be used to delegate tasks and improve performance, leading to better results in complex tasks. AI is an inflection point in technology, comparable to the internet and the industrial revolution. Can be game-changing to automate time-consuming tasks, freeing up human resources for more strategic work. Autocomplete and code generation tools like Copilot can significantly speed up coding and reduce errors. AI can be a superpower, enabling rapid prototyping, idea generation, and creative tasks. Safeguarding AI models requires transparency, explainability, and consideration of potential biases. Regulations may be necessary to ensure responsible use of AI, but they should not stifle innovation. Global adoption of AI should be encouraged to prevent technological disparities between countries.

Episode sponsors: - Binarly (https://binarly.io) - FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Caleb Sima is a cybersecurity lifer now responsible for security at Robinhood, a mobile stock trading platform. Caleb joins Ryan on the show to discuss the early hacking scene in Atlanta, building SPI Dynamics in a webapp security powerhouse, the evolution of attack surfaces, the CISO's changing priorities, and more...

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Allison Nixon is Chief Researcher at Unit 221B and a trailblazer in the world of cybercrime research. In this episode, we deep-drive into the shadowy dynamics of underground criminal communities, high-profile ransomware attacks, teenage hacking groups breaking into big companies, and the challenges of attribution and law enforcement. Allison sheds light on why companies continue to be vulnerable targets and what they're often missing in their cybersecurity strategies.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 37: This week, we revisit the public reporting on a US/Russia cyber stand down order, CISA declaring no change to its position on tracking Russian threats, and the high-level diplomatic optics at play. Plus, a dissection of ‘The Lamberts’ APT and connections to US intelligence agencies, attribution around ‘Operation Triangulation’ and the lack of recent visibility into these actors. We also discuss a fresh batch of VMware zero-days, China’s i-Soon ‘hackers-for-hire’ indictments, the Pangu/i-Soon connection, and a new wave of Apple threat-intel warnings about mercenary spyware infections. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine).

After a career in government that included physical security work for the U.S. State Department, Matt Honea transitioned to Silicon Valley and turned his attention to the cyber-insurance space. He joins the podcast for a frank discussion on cyber-insurance, ransomware payments and trends, and his opinions on innovation in security.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 7: In this episode, we try to close the book on the CrowdStrike Windows BSOD story, Microsoft VP David Weston’s technical documentation and issues around kernel access and OS resilience. We also discuss Binarly’s PKFail research, secure boot bypasses, Dan Geer and tech monoculture, software vendor liability issues and the need for inspectability in security mechanisms. The conversation explores cyber angles to train service disruptions in Paris, the history of cyber operations targeting the Olympics, the lack of public acknowledgment and attribution of cyber operations by Western intelligence agencies, and the importance of transparency and case studies in understanding and discussing cyber operations. Hosts: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (SentinelLabs), Costin Raiu (Art of Noh), Ryan Naraine (SecurityWeek)

Dark Reading executive editor Kelly Jackson Higgins joins the podcast to tell security journalism war stories, talk about her new WiFi-enabled refrigerator and some trends worth following closely.

Security industry pioneer Dave Aitel dishes on entrepreneurship, fostering a "one team, one parking lot" culture, how lessons from his time at the NSA still guides his decisions, and his approach to blunt, honest marketing. We also discuss a shared passion for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and his work supporting Project Grapple in Miami.

Ron Brash joins Ryan Naraine on the show to talk about the recent water supply hack, the state of security in ICS/SCADA installations, the checklist of affordable things for critical infrastructure defenders, and the things we should worry -- and not worry -- about. Ron is Director of Cyber Security Insights at Verve Industrial Protection, a critical infrastructure-focused organisation that sells services and products that work across IT and OT environments for effective cyber security, controls and management.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 33: In this episode, we unpack the UK government's secret push for backdoor access to encrypted iCloud data, Apple’s approach to iCloud encryption, and the broader implications for privacy and security on a global scale. Plus, how security agencies handle zero-day vulnerabilities, surveillance spyware and mercenary hacking, and TikTok-powered election disinformation and interference. From wormable exploits like Eternal Bue to the realities of AI-based spying, the episode offers a detailed look into how government oversight, private sector collaboration, and shifting market forces have reshaped the way we think about cybersecurity. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine).

This is the republication of an interview first conducted in March 2013 with then-VUPEN chief executive Chauki Bekrar. The audio file was lost in several podcast platform transfers and I'm glad to be able to retain this interview for historical purposes. The recording was conducted in the hallways of the CanSecWest Pwn2Own hacking contest in 2013 where Bekrar's team of hackers demo'd a zero-day attack against Microsoft Internet Explorer 10 on Windows 8, an exploit that bypassed all mitigations including the browser sandbox. We chat about the controversies surrounding the sale of zero-day vulnerabilities and exploits, his company’s business dealings and the work that goes into winning the CanSecWest Pwn2Own hacker contest. (Please excuse the audio quality and background chatter, this was recorded with a small handheld device in a noisy room).

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 13: This is a special edition of the show, featuring Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade's full keynote day remarks at LABScon2024. In this talk, Juanito addresses the current state of the threat intelligence industry, expressing a need for a difficult conversation about its direction and purpose. He discusses feelings of disenfranchisement among professionals, the void in meaningful work, and the importance of reclaiming control and value in cybersecurity. Juan emphasizes the need for researchers, journalists, and even VCs, to be the change to reinvigorate the industry and ensure its relevance and impact. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (SentinelLabs). Costin Raiu and Ryan Naraine are listening to this episode.

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Peculiar Ventures chief executive Ryan Hurst joins the show to talk about a career that spanned 20 years at Microsoft and Google, his work building the plumbing for encryption on the web, unsolved problems in BGP security, the hype and promise of AI, and Microsoft's ongoing cloud security hiccups.

Co-founder and CEO of Recorded Future Christopher Ahlberg discusses the emergence of threat intelligence as a valuable security tool, the morals and ethics surrounding disclosure of nation-state attacks and the importance of tracking adversaries beyond the wall.

Corellium co-founder and chief executive Amanda Gorton joins the show to talk about raising $25 million in Series A funding, the market fit for device modeling and software virtualization products, the trials and tribulations of startup life, and the nuances of operating in the world of offensive security research.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 17: News of a wiper malware attack in Israel implicating ESET, threats from wartime hacktivists, China's strange response to Volt Typhoon attribution and Section 702 messaging, an IE zero-day discovery and web browser rot in South Korea, the ongoing isolation of Kaspersky due to sanctions, and the geopolitical influences affecting cybersecurity reporting. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs) (SentinelLabs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) (Art of Noh) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine) (SecurityWeek).

Episode sponsors: Binarly, the supply chain security experts (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Danny Adamitis is a principal information security engineer at Black Lotus Labs, the threat research division within Lumen Technologies. On this episode of the show, we discuss his team's recent discovery of an impossible-to-kill botnet packed with end-of-life SOHO routers serving as a covert data transfer network for Volt Typhoon, a Chinese government-backed hacking group previously caught targeting US critical infrastructure. Danny digs into the inner workings of the botnet, the global problem end-of-life devices becoming useful tools for malicious actors, and the things network defenders can do today to mitigate threats at this layer.

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) GitHub security chief Mike Hanley joins the show to discuss merging the CSO and SVP/Engineering roles, securing data and code in an organization under constant attack, the thrilling promise of AI to the future of secure code, the dangers of equating SBOMs to supply chain security, and new SEC reporting rules for CISOs.

[ DISCLAIMER: These are the personal opinions of Tim MalcomVetter and do not construe an official endorsement or business relationship of his employer with any product or service. ] Walmart Red Team lead Tim MalcomVetter joins the podcast to talk about red-team/blue team dynamics, the adversarial relationship between the two sides, the mentality of a determined attacker, and why everyone in cybersecurity should give jiu-jitsu a try.

Red teamer and security researcher by day, nerdcore rapper by night, ‘int eighty’ joins the podcast to talk about his work breaking into computer systems, common security mistakes that people make, and his double life as a musician in Dual Core.

Symmetry Systems co-founder Mohit Tiwari has been studying data security and control flow access for more than a decade. On this episode of the podcast, he discusses his transition from academia to data security entrepreneurship, first principles around the data security and privacy, the exploding DSPM (data security posture management) space, and the mission to solve one of cybersecurity's biggest problems.

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) DARPA program manager Perri Adams joins the conversation to chat about her love for CTF hacking competitions, the hunt for leapfrog security technologies in DARPA’s Information Innovation Office (I2O), and the goal of the new AI Cyber Challenge (AIxCC) offering $20 million in prizes to teams competing to develop AI-driven systems to automatically secure critical code.

A conversation with Bishop Fox chief executive Vinnie Liu on the origins and evolution of the pentest services business, the emerging continuous attack surface management space, raising $75m as a 'growth mode' investment, cybersecurity's people problem, and much more...

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 14: The buddies are back together for a discussion on Juan’s LABScon keynote and mental health realities, Microsoft rewriting the Windows Recall security architecture, a new CVSS 9.9 Linux CUPS flaw, Kaspersky's controversial transition to Ultra AV, and the intelligence operations surrounding exploding pagers in Lebanon. (This episode is dedicated to the memory of Jeff Wade from Solis, who was an important part of the LABScon family.) Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (SentinelLabs), Costin Raiu (Art of Noh) and Ryan Naraine (SecurityWeek).

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 9: On this episode, we look at the hacking scene in Taiwan, the sad state of visibility into big malware campaigns, the absence of APTs linked to the prolific MIVD Dutch intelligence agency, the blurring lines between big ransomware heists and nation-state actors caught using ransomware as a tool for sabotage and misattribution. Plus, Chinese mobile OS vendor Xiaoimi caught disabling parts of its infrastructure -- including its global app store -- to thwart Pwn2Own contestants; and news of an addition to the LABScon 2024 keynote stage. Hosts: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (SentinelLabs), Costin Raiu (Art of Noh), Ryan Naraine (SecurityWeek)

Episode sponsors: Binarly, the supply chain security experts (https://binarly.io) XZ.fail backdoor detector (https://xz.fail) Cris Neckar is a veteran security researcher now working as a partner at Two Bear Capital. In this episode, he reminisces on the early days of hacking at Neohapsis, his time on the Google Chrome security team, shenanigans at Pwn2Own/Pwnium, and the cat-and-mouse battle for browser exploit chains. We also discuss the zero-day exploit marketplace, the hype and promise of AI, and his mission to help highly technical founders bring products to market.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 29: Another day, another Ivanti zero-day being exploited in the wild. Plus, China's strange response to Volt Typhoon attribution, Japan blames China for hacks, a Samsung 0-click vulnerability found by Project Zero, Kim Zetter's reporting on drone sightings and a nuclear scare. Plus, hijacking abandoned .gov backdoors and Ukrainian hacktivists wiping a major Russian ISP. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine).

After a 20-year career working in the offensive security reseach trenches, security industry pioneer Nico Waisman made the transition to defense to head up privacy and security efforts at ride-sharing firm Lyft. Waisman joins Ryan Naraine on the show to talk about early hacking in Argentina, the contributions of non-Americans to the security industry, and much much more...

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 5: Hot off the press, we dive into the news of the CrowdStrike software update that caused blue screens on computers worldwide, the resulting chaos and potential connections to the Microsoft 365 outage, the fragility of modern computing and the risks of new software paradigms. We also discuss the AT&T mega-breach and the ransom paid to delete the stolen data; the challenges of ransomware and the uncertainty surrounding the deletion of stolen data; the FBI gaining access to a password-protected phone, the prices for zero-click exploits; and the resurgence of APT 41 with expanding targets. Plus, some news on upcoming keynote speakers at LabsCon 2024. Hosts: Costin Raiu (Art of Noh), Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (SentinelLabs), Ryan Naraine (SecurityWeek)

Hitch Partners principal Michael Piacente dishes on the cybersecurity job market during an economic crisis, the intricacies of recruiting top-flight security talent, the high rate of turnover among CISOs, and why companies should spend more time on writing better job descriptions.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 6: As the dust settles on the CrowdStrike incident that blue-screened 8.5 million Windows computers worldwide, we dig into CrowdStrike’s preliminary incident report, the lack of transparency in the update process and the need for more robust testing and validation. We also discuss Microsoft's responsibility to avoid infinite BSOD loops, risks of deploying EDR agents on critical systems, and how an EU settlement is being blamed for EDR vendors having access to the Windows kernel. Other topics on the show include Mandiant's attribution capabilities, North Korea’s gov-backed hacking teams launching ransomware on hospitals, KnowBe4 hiring a fake North Korean IT worker, and new developments in the NSO Group surveillance-ware lawsuit. Hosts: Costin Raiu (Art of Noh), Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (SentinelLabs), Ryan Naraine (SecurityWeek)

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 32: In this episode, we rummage through the DeepSeek hype and break down what makes it different from OpenAI’s models, why it’s stirring up existential controversies, and what it means for the broader tech landscape. We get into the privacy concerns, the geo-political implications, how AI models handle data, the ongoing debate over IP theft and innovation, and the challenges that come with a Chinese company shipping an open-source alternative. Beyond AI, we dig into some of the latest headlines; from a Chinese ‘backdoor’ in medical devices, problems with CISA’s backdoor bulletin, the risks of insecure IoT, phishing attacks on influencers, and ongoing battles over censorship in the VPN space. We also touch on WhatsApp catching spyware vendor Paragon Solutions and potential shifts in U.S. government policy on commercial mercenary hacking and surveillance companies. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine).

Shubham Shah is a brilliant hacker who quit his pen-testing job to hack for cash in bug-bounty programs. He quickly mastered the game of automating automating pre-breach reconnaissance and zero in on common webapp programming and configuration errors. Shubs, now co-founder at Assetnote, joined Ryan on the show to talk about the stressful life of a fulltime bug-bounty hunter, advancements in web app security defense, and how automation is completely rewriting the bug-discovery business.

David Weston manages the Windows Device and Offensive Security Research teams at Microsoft. He joins the podcast to talk about how proactive red-team exercises push major mitigations to Microsoft's products and the current state of security in the Windows ecosystem.

Three Buddy Problem - Episode 18: This week’s show covers the White House's new Traffic Light Protocol (TLP) guidance, Reuters expose of Appin as a hack-for-hire mercenary company, Fortinet zero-day exploitation and missing CSRB investigations, major cryptocurrency heists, Apple opening Private Cloud Compute to public inspection, Russians removed from Linux kernel maintenance and China’s Antiy beefing with Sentinel One over APT reporting. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs) (SentinelLabs), Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu) (Art of Noh) and Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine) (SecurityWeek).

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) SecuRepairs.org co-founder Paul Roberts joins the show to discuss his passion for the right to repair consumer electronic devices, the big-ticket lobbyists working to undermine the movement, and how changing consumer spending patterns are helping to rack up regulatory wins.

Microsoft's David Weston joins Ryan on the show to discuss a new report that shows 83% of organizations have been hit by a firmware attack in the last two years. As businesses continue to under-invest in resources to prevent firmware attacks, Weston warns about the inevitability of advanced attacks at the 'invisible' layer, the absence of skills and tools to find malicious activity in firmware, the nightmare of navigating the patching treadmill, and exciting tech innovation in the space.

Netflix threat detection and response practitioner Michael Laventure joins the show to talk about a simple goal to "do security better." We discuss a transition from .gov security work to the fast pace of Silicon Valley, the culture clashes that can make life difficult, the value of threat-intelligence to a modern security program, and why we should all be optimistic about the future of cybersecurity.

Founding-member of the Google security team Heather Adkins joins the conversation to stress the importance of defenders playing the "long-game," the need for meaningful culture-change among security leaders, the expansion of zero-trust beyond identities and devices, and some thoughts on the future of electronic voting. Sponsored by Eclypsium: Eclypsium ships an enterprise device platform that provides visibility and mitigation for malicious activity all the way down to the firmware and hardware level. Think of it as one platform to discover, inventory, assess risk, patch, and detect compromises and supply chain breaches across your entire fleet of devices. Request a demo at Eclypsium.com (https://eclypsium.com).

Maddie Stone is a security researcher in Google's Project Zero team. Over the last few years, she has publicly tracked the discovery and disclosure of zero-day malware attacks seen in the wild. On this episode, Maddie joins Ryan to chat about three years of zero-day exploitation data, the nuances around 0day disclosures, the never-ending struggle to mitigate memory corruption attacks and the need for transparency among affected vendors.

Episode sponsors: Binarly, the supply chain security experts (https://binarly.io) FwHunt (https://fwhunt.run) Katie Moussouris founded Luta Security in 2016 and bootstrapped it into a profitable business with a culture of equity and healthy boundaries. She is a pioneer in the world of bug bounties and vulnerability disclosure and serves in multiple advisory roles for the U.S. government, including the new CISA Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB). In this episode, Moussouris discusses Luta Security's new Workforce Platform profit-sharing initiative, the changing face of the job market, criticisms of the CSRB's lack of enforcement authority, and looming regulations around zero-day vulnerability data.

Episode sponsors: Binarly (https://binarly.io) Binary Risk Hunt (https://risk.binarly.io) In this reboot of the Security Conversations interview series, Foundation Capital partner Sid Trivedi weighs in on major changes to the RSA Innovation Sandbox, the mandatory $5M uncapped SAFE investment for all 10 finalists, and red-flag concerns around discounts and pro-rata rights. Also discussed: controversial pay-for-play dynamics involving CISOs and venture capital firms, ethical implications of CISOs taking advisory positions in startups, and the challenges of investing in seed-stage startups amidst a trend towards platformization.

Hacker-turned-entrepreneur Matt Suiche reminisces about the hacking scene in France, his introduction to memory forensics and how his research led to presenting at Microsoft's Blue Hat, the grind of building and selling a company, and his passion for supporting young security researchers in developing countries.

Journalist-turned-intel analyst Selena Larson joins the podcast to discuss the nuances of cybersecurity journalism, making the shift to analyzing intelligence and writing for a private audience, the ransomware epidemic, and the state of critical infrastructure security.

Venky Venkateswaran works on client security and roadmap planning at Intel Corp. On this episode of the podcast, Venky joins Ryan to talk about a reported surge in firmware attacks, Intel's ongoing investments in cybersecurity, the importance of transparency and open documentation, and the company's push to fight ransomware with its flagship TDT (Threat Detection Technology).

Director of Security at Facebook Aanchal Gupta joins the podcast to share her story and provide guidance for young women struggling to overcome societal obstacles.