InSecurity Podcast: Securing Our Democracy - The Case for Robust Campaign Cybersecurity
On October 19, the United States Federal prosecutors unsealed charges against six Russian intelligence officers accused of engaging in some of the most destructive cyberattacks of recent years. Their operations:
- Knocked out Ukraine’s energy grid
- Exposed emails from the French president’s party
- Damaged global systems in the 2017 NotPetya attack
Sun Tzu famously said, “all warfare is based on deception.” He could hardly have anticipated how his words would ultimately be substantiated, particularly by the tactics of today’s cybercriminals. Even after 30 years in the trenches, today’s InSecurity podcast guest John McClurg is still surprised by the innovative tactics of threat actors.
Sun Tzu reportedly also said, “it’s not an admission of defeat to recognize and respect the strengths of your enemy; rather, it’s a necessary precondition to victory."
What the heck are we talking about? Stick around my friends… you shall hear and be heard...
Once again back it’s the incredible… Sorry, a little Public Enemy for you there. It’s time for another very special episode of InSecurity.
On this week’s InSecurity podcast, Matt Stephenson has a chat with BlackBerry SVP and CISO John McClurg about what is going on in the world of securing the electoral process of the United States elections. This is not a podcast about politics, it’s a podcast about securing the processes and mechanisms.
Regardless of where you fall on the political spectrum, the vote you cast should be the vote that is recorded. How do we protect that process? Tune in and find out…
About John McClurg
John McClurg (@JohnMcClurg) is Sr. Vice President and CISO at BlackBerry. He spent his early career with the U.S. government, serving as both a Supervisory Special Agent and Branch Chief for the FBI, as well as a Deputy Branch Chief for the CIA. In these roles, McClurg was involved in the capturing of both Kevin Poulsen and twice-convicted spy Harold James Nicholson.
Following his public service, John has served as Vice President and Chief Security Officer for Lucent, Honeywell and Dell.
About Matt Stephenson
Insecurity Podcast host Matt Stephenson (@packmatt73) is the regular host of the InSecurity podcast and video series at events around the globe. Matt has spent the last 10 years in the world of data protection and cybersecurity. Since 2016, he has been with Cylance (acquired by BlackBerry in 2019), extolling the virtues of artificial intelligence and machine learning and how, when applied to network security, this cutting edge technology can wrong-foot the bad guys.
Prior to the COVID-19 shutdown, Matt was on the road over 100 days a year doing live malware demonstrations for audiences from San Diego, to DC, to London, to Abu Dhabi, to Singapore, to Sydney. He says that one of the funniest things he’s ever been a part of was blowing up a live instance of the notorious ransomware NotPetya just six hours after the news broke, in Washington DC, directly across the street from the FBI headquarters. As soon as he detonated the malware (on a VM, of course) a parade of police cars with sirens blaring roared past the building he was in. Matt is pretty sure they weren't there for him, but you never know...
Every week on the InSecurity Podcast, Matt gets to interview interesting people doing interesting things all over the world of cybersecurity and in the extended world of hacking. Sometimes, that means talking about hacking elections, or the coffee supply chain... other times, that means delving deep into the world of social manipulation or the sovereign wealth fund of a national economy.
The InSecurity podcast is about talking with the people who build, manage or wreck the systems that we have put in place to make the world go round... we hope you enjoy the show.
