Hacker Valley Studio

This week, join Ron and Chris as they sit down for a raw conversation with Ian Murphy. Ian is a game-changing pioneer in cyber training resourcing, adding spice to a dull, outdated training market. His company, CyberOff, is the “antidote for dull cyber training.” The three dive deep into topics like comedy, creating and sourcing content, being vulnerable and the reason for it all. Key Takeaways: 02:44 This is Rock n’ Roll 03:04 Bio 4:00 Content- where does it originate? 06:43 What is it like to be an entrepreneur in cyber? 08:20 Where does Ian draw the line? 11:55 What makes comedy? Chris and Ian deliberate 15:36 Working on vulnerability 17:23 Ian’s approach- Where did we go wrong in teaching? 20:31 The end goal 23:35 The most “popular” form 28:09 Ian’s inspiration Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Ian Murphy: LinkedIn | Twitter | Email | Website Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon This episode is sponsored by Living Security

The average ransomware cost is $312,493. That number has increased 171% compared 2019. Why does it still work? What we have to do to stop it? How, in 2021, can a criminal organization have a customer service division? Yes, that’s right, customer service. Join Ron and Chris for this ransomware discussion. Note: After additional research we discovered that an investigation determined that the woman that lost her life, did not die due to the ransomware and would have perished regardless of the attack. Key Takeaways: 00:57 What is ransomware? 02:39 Who gets attacked? 04:53 Criminal service with customer service 07:43 The history of Ransomware 11:45 Immutable 14:40 Use 2-factor authentication! 16:32 Chris’ take on the future of ransomware 19:20 Ron’s future predictions Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon This episode is sponsored by Axonius

Chris Hughes is the CISO and Co-Founder of Aquia and has nearly 20 years of Cyber/IT experience. He's an Air Force veteran as well as former Government civil service employee with the U.S. Navy and FedRAMP. Chris also teaches in two M.S. Cyber Programs at Capitol Technology University and UMGC. Chris is passionate about Cloud Security and is active with the Cloud Security Alliance and Cloud Native Computing Foundation and he also hosts a podcast called "Resilient Cyber". Key Takeaways: 02:52 Bio 04:24 What motivates Chris? 06:03 Time management 07:24 Failing up – lessons learned 09:09 Habits and mindset 10:59 Chris’ podcast – Resilient Cyber 13:09 Branding & persona – using your vulnerability 15:07 Using your network 19:06 Stop waiting and start working harder 20:40 Maintaining authenticity 22:22 Input vs. Output 25:13 Talking Legacy 28:12 Being resilient Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Chris Hughes: Linkedin | Podcast Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon This episode is sponsored by Living Security

Grace is Cofounder and COO of Pulsedive, a US-based threat intelligence startup. At Pulsedive, Grace works closely with defensive security (and in particular, cyber threat intelligence) teams to support the development of integrated intelligence capabilities and programs. Join Chris, Ron and Grace as they discuss transitioning into cyber, finding the right community to support your personality, and the beauty and purpose behind it all – as a creative in cybersecurity. Key Takeaways: 01:46 Bio 02:46 Creativity & cyber 07:34 How does modeling help Grace’s career in cybersecurity? 09:37 The beauty in cybersecurity 14:38 Making the transition with no experience 17:27 What’s the greater purpose? How do you mesh your personality into your career? 20:51 Grace’s ideas for continuing to level the playing field regarding transitioning into cyber 23:19 Humanity in cybersecurity 28:32 Understanding how to find the beauty in cyber 31:42 Get in touch with Grace Chi Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Grace Chi: LinkedIn | Twitter Pulsedive: Twitter | LinkedIn Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon This episode is sponsored by livingsecurity.com

Among other things, Dr. Bahijja Raimi-Abraham is an award-winning researcher, lecturer and trailblazer in the world of nanotechnology. She also hosts a podcast called Monday Science, keeping listeners updated on the latest in tech, science, health and their relationship. She joins hosts Ron and Chris for a jam packed episode, where they cover nanotechnology, biohacking, the vast world of academia and much more. Key Takeaways: 02:30 Bio 04:52 The origin story: combining science and art 09:40 Nanotechnology: what’s the latest, and where is the science headed? 16:00 Biohacking? 18:00 How does nanotechnology communicate? 23:34 The path to Academia: how do you find yours? 29:45 A message to the multi-talanted; knowing yourself, your strengths and Identifying the need 33:30 Get in touch with Bahijja Raimi-Abraham Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Bahijja Raimi-Abraham: Twitter | LInkedin | Website | Podcast Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon This episode is sponsored by livingsecurity.com

Hacker Valley's Hosts, Ron and Chris are speaking with Ganesh Pai, the CEO and founder of Uptycs. What is it like to be an entrepreneur in the Cybersecurity field? While learning how Ganesh started Uptycs, learn of the techniques that he uses, such as asking the right questions and using different systems to further understand security software. Key Takeaways: 01:42 Introducing Ganesh Pai. 02:30 Learning Ganesh's Background and his journey in entrepreneurship. 06:20 The Query System. 07:00 What is your professional Superpower? What time was that Evident? 07:1 Understanding the technology, working and interacting with others in the field. 10:45 Proactive and Reactive security. 12:00 How to ask the right questions. 14:10 Where does artificial intelligence play a part in Cyber Security. 19:00 Challenges Ganesh has faced in the workplace during COVID and the challenges and changes it poses. 20:20 Adapting to the evolving businesses and communities in a changing environment. 24:00 Helpful Habits 27:11 Last Advice Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Ganesh Pai: LinkedIn | Uptycs Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon This episode is sponsored by Uptycs

In today's episode Ron and Chris talk to Living Security's CEO and Co-Founder Ashley Rose, speaking on breaking the mold in the workspace and how allowing your team to have fun with what they do will create a stronger, happier and healthier work environment. Tune in to find out why, and also to get a better understanding of why Living Security is a must-have resource. 01:10 Listeners are introduced to the topic of today's episode 02:10 We meet Ashley Rose and discover her role in cybersecurity 04:30 Ashley's background before cybersecurity 08:45 How she incorporated fun into training in the workplace 16:37 Training based off of an individual's unique learning technique 19:52 How the brain activity reacts when having fun, and why that matters 24:00 Interactive learning styles to keep someone captivated 27:52 Ashley speaks on what inspires her and her team to maintain a fun, healthy and inclusive environment for everyone 32:28 Discussing how to get out of the FUD: Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt and to genuinely enjoy what you do. Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Ashley Rose: livingsecurity.com | LinkedIn | Twitter Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon This episode is sponsored by livingsecurity.com

Hosts Ron and Chris interview Andy Ellis, CISO for over two decades that recently started a startup. He is an operating partner at YL Ventures. Andy shares his perspective on whether there is really a skills gap or are we approaching this problem the wrong way? 0:57 – Intro 2:19 – Bio 3:12 – Andy’s personality that puts him in unique situations to win awards 4:29 – What other kind of things Andy experienced hacking in besides macro things 5:57 – The number one hack Andy did that spanned for a decade in his career 7:13 – Was Andy originally hired to do security for companies? 8:29 – Why Andy says there is no talent shortage 12:11 – If everyone started to go into security engineering team, would there be a gap to fill roles? 13:09 – Where did CISOS, managers, and recruiters go wrong in looking for security professionals? 19:55 – Andy’s number one tenet for leadership 22:42 –Andy’s philosophies on keeping the talent after investing on training programs, and having skills that can be used on other areas 24:49 – In what ways Andy is passing down knowledge 27:14 – Advice on the leadership journey that Andy gives to listeners 28::10 – Best ways to keep up with Andy Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Follow Andy Ellis Twitter | LinkedIn Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon Visit our sponsor Panther Labs

On this episode, Hacker Valley Studio has a very big announcement! Hosts Ron and Chris interview guest Dean Sysman, CEO and co-founder of Axonius. The values, and founder story of Dean are shared as Ron and Chris ask him very interesting questions. Dean started his journey years ago with a passion on how technology could impact the world. He has also brought many values to Axonius, helping people through growth to become a better version of themselves. Dean shares how he figured that the determining factor of success was realizing the problem that the organization needs to solve, and focusing on the customer’s experience. 0:21 – Intro 1:53 – Bio 3:24 – Ron and Chris talk about their role in Axonius and Dean Sysman shares the value he saw in them 7:26 – Dean’s founder story in Axonius 13:01 – The values that Dean has brought to Axonius and people’s lives 16:42 – Dean’s turning point where he could no longer go back from where he was 23:31 – Why Dean wants Ron and Chris to be the voice of Axonius 26:01 – Who are Dean’s inspiration for growth? 29:38 – What advice does Dean have to those that are looking for growth? 31:42 – How to stay up-to-date with Dean and all the great things at Axonius Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Dean Sysman: Axonius Website | E-mail Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon

Hosts Ron and Chris interview guest Erik Goldman, VP of Product at Panther Labs, a software engineer, expert in product and an entrepreneur. Erik is great at asking questions, that is one of his superpowers. One of his strategies to build a product is to sit down with customers, ask them what they want him to do, deeply understand their persona, and gather data. Erik builds his thesis for success, and knows how to distinguish a good company from a great company by analyzing which one has a philosophy that goes beyond the software. Erik offers advice for listeners on how to operate better on their company. 1:03 - Intro 2:37 – Bio 6:18 – The difference between building a product and building a business 7:18 – What are Erik’s strengths based on his past experiences 9:20 – How Erik stays away from tinkering with the code, and more of the technical aspects 11:48 – Erik’s power of understanding the concepts by asking questions 13:19 – The difference between a good company and a great company 15:20 – What Erik thinks about the future of technology and the cyber security of the future 19:30 – Erik’s thoughts about automating security operation 26:07 – Erik’s advice for listeners to operate better in their company’s environment 27:50 – How to stay up to date with Panther Labs. Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Erik Goldman: Panther Website Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon Visit our sponsor Panther Labs

Hosts Ron and Chris interview guest Keith Wilson, director of cyber security education at Attack IQ Academy. Keith is the perfect example on how to take years of experience in engineering and analysis, and turn it into something that is impactful for all people. Keith has created educational content for people in the industry and different types of learners. His trajectory is filled with success stories, and also invites people who want to get into cyber security. 1:11 - Intro 3:03 – Bio 6:13 – How Keith’s fascination with education started 9:09 – Blueprint for education: concepts, the structure of classes, and activities 12:33 – The approach to different types of learners 15:21 – Discussion about students who want to get into cyber security or transition into another aspect of it 16:51 – Keith’s creative process for building new content and sharing information 20:51 – Success story of when education is done right 22:41 – Advice to listeners about putting out educational content 24:16 – How to stay up to date with Keith and Attack Academy IQ Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Keith C. Wilson: LinkedIn | Instagram | Twitter | Attack IQ Academy Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon Visit our friends and sponsor Panther Labs.

What do you call cyberspace in space? What is the evolution of cyber security in space? The expert Frank Pound, computer scientist, entrepreneur, founder and president of Astro Sec is the guest to clarify all things related to cyberspace. Space traffic control is discussed. Frank advised the Air Force, Space Force, and their contractors to help build the Hack-A-Sat competition which attracted teams from around the world to demonstrate their prowess in this blended space and cyber competition challenging them in everything from orbital dynamics to radio communications. 1:00 – Intro 2:10 – Bio Frank Pound 11:10 - Frank Pound talks about the democratization of technology 12:03 – The explosion of IOTs on the market, sensors, and rapid advancements on space launch 12:54 – The open-source hardware movement 18:04 – General excitement about space in 2019 and investment in safety 20:56 – Potential for a cascading effect making space travel impossible 23:37 – Frank Pound talks about safety measures 24:50 – A summary of Hack-A-Sat’s latest works 27:22 – Alternatives to cyber security and safety in space 37:00 – Frank answers the question on how to do missions in space 40:16 – How to find out more about Frank Pound and Hack-A-Sat’s competition, interviews and resources Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Frank Pound: Twitter | Website Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon Visit our friends and sponsor Panther Labs

In this episode of Hacker Valley, Chris and Ron tackle a quick question. The question of the day is, “what is social networking?” Together they discuss different aspects of social media and how it facilitates connections and careers. Ron’s perspective is that social networking empowers folks to find like minded people, learn new things, self advocate and learn about others. Chris shares how social networking on LinkedIn put him in a position to build a community in cybersecurity. Timecodes 01:53 - The difference between networking and social networking and polishing profiles. 04:00 - How Ron engages with social networking mindfully. 06:30 - How LinkedIn helped Chris and Ron find their community. 08:46 - How social networks can elevate cybersecurity practitioners, researchers and businesses. 10:00 - Threat intelligence, open source intelligence and finding family on social networks 13:00 - Perspectives on the future of social networks and digital interaction. 15:45 - Making the most of social networks Links Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon

Ken Underhill is an award-winning cyber security executive, entrepreneur, and teacher. His mission is to help others find their value and share it; ultimately leading to success both professionally and personally. Ken’s courses offer an intuitive approach to help start a career in cyber security. Whether you’re a budding cyber security professional or a seasoned veteran, Ken’s perspective can serve a purpose in your life. Join Ron, Chris and Ken to dive into what it takes to create content, help others, and thrive in your career! 01:30 Guest Intro 02:14 Bio 11:30 Ken’s journey in content creation 13:22 Why focusing on giving value first matters 16:15 Ken’s future plan for content 23:50 The path to making an impact 29:40 Connecting with your audience 37:58 Get in touch with Ken Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Ken Underhill: Courses | YouTube | Website | LinkedIn Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon Visit our friends and sponsor Panther Labs

In this episode of Hacker Valley, Chris and Ron are joined by a familiar friend, Valentina Palacín, who you might have heard on HVS Blue season 1. Valentina is an author, public speaker, self-taught developer, and Threat Operations lead at Marqeta Incorporated, armed with a background in translation and interpretation. Join Chris, Ron and Valentina for this round-table masterclass in all things Threat Hunting to discuss the questions you may be asking yourself: What is Threat Hunting? How do you become a Threat Hunter? What’s it like to be in the shoes of a Threat Hunter? Or work with one? Key Takeaways: 0:00 Welcome to the podcast! 1:10 Introduction/ Bio 2:55 What is Threat Hunting? 5:25 Chris’ take on working with a Threat Hunter (Ron) 7:08 Valentina’s Threat Hunting flow 9:18 Ron and Valentina talk about progressions in Threat Intelligence 12:20 The group talks about the ideal characteristics of a Threat Hunter in both junior and senior level positions 18:00 How to get into Threat Hunting 20:55 Get in touch with Valentina! Valentina Palacín: Book | LinkedIn | Twitter Hacker Valley Studio: Swag | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Email Ron & Chris | Website Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon

In this episode, Chris, Ron, and their special guest going to be talking about your table. Not the table itself, but what is on it. They are talking about food and following our passions. They've brought in Bri Van Scotter, professional Chef, author, hunter, and host of the TV series Wilderness to Table. Bri is so unbelievably talented in so many areas. Everyone is going to love this episode and learn a little bit about the food we eat. Key Moments 00:56 - Intro to Bri 02:41 - Bri’s Background 03:59 - The darker side of food production 04:57 - The hunt begins 06:13 - For the love of food 11:41 - On going deep with your craft 16:10 - Getting more in touch with your food 21:33 - Eating for Health 22:52 - Honoring our food sources 25:28 - Knowledge is power Visit Bri at her website Follow Bri on Instagram Keep in touch with Hacker Valley Studio on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon Visit our friends and sponsor Panther Labs

Ron and Chris are the hosts and guests for this episode! This episode answers fundamental questions about Security Architecture. Learning about security architecture is absolutely essential for anyone on the path of becoming a cyber security expert just looking to learn more about a cybersecurity topic. Security Architecture is the foundation, the fabric and the process used to help secure your data, your privacy, and even your money. Now for a second, Imagine that you are an architect and your biggest strength is your ability to build banks. And a new client reaches out to you... We'll name this client Ray. And Ray asks you to build his company a new bank with all the bells and whistles. You're going to need to build Ray and his company something spectacular! This bank you build is going to need to serve as an office and boost productivity for the bank staff. The bank is also going to serve as a place where customers can deposit and withdraw money. But most importantly, Ray is going to want you to protect his crown jewel, his money! (Think of all those gold bricks and bars that Ray is going to want to keep under his possession ) Key Takeaways: 0:00 - Welcome back to the Hacker Valley Studio 1:10 - Ron's favorite topic! Security Architecture 1:45 - Security architecture is the foundation 2:21 - Where a security architecture starts and stops 4:00 - A security architect is playing a game of Tower Defense 6:27 - Using EASY Framework as a security architect 10:04 - Prerequisites for becoming a security architect 13:55 - Differences between security architect and security engineers 16:55 - Resources for learning more about security architecture 19:21 - Stay in touch with Hacker Valley Studio! Keep in touch with Hacker Valley Studio on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram Join our monthly mastermind group via Patreon Learn more about our fantastic sponsor Upytcs

In this episode, we speak to a Detection and Response expert! Our guest is Nick Hakmiller, Senior Engineering Manager at Panther Labs. Nick was first exposed to technology in High School where he took an introduction to Visual Basic programming course. When learning about multi-threaded applications Nick became curious and began exploring how to open too many threads to crash a computer. Throughout Nick’s career he’s maintained an interest and focus on attack techniques and building defensive security programs. On occasions, security controls may fail to catch an attacker. A detection is logic that is applied to logs, security controls, and alerts to notify teams and automated processes. Nick describes Python as an exceptional programming language to apply detections and create detections as code. Nick describes many aspects of security as an engineering problem. As organizations transform and adopt new technologies, security issues arise and evolve. Nick describes that the team’s that are most successful with applying detection as code have chosen to view security as a function that engineering should participate in and help solve. As an organization’s security program matures, Nick mentions that the most impactful detections will likely be written and created by someone within the organization. For instance, creating a detection that defines which users should have access to sensitive data is likely to be created by a member of the organization with knowledge of team structure. Towards the end of the episode, Nick shares his wisdom to any practitioner that wants to step into the role of creating detections and providing impact while doing so. Key Takeaways 0:00 - Welcome Back to the Hacker Valley Studio Podcast! 2:29 - Nick Hakmiller, Senior Engineering Manager at Panther Labs 4:20 - How Nick became interested in technology 6:00 - What is a detection? 7:25 - How detection as code applies to cybersecurity and software engineering 10:11 - Prerequisites to consider before applying detection as code 12:27 - Thinking beyond out of the box solutions and applying detections 15:54 - Categories of detections and which are most impactful 23:45 - Reducing alerts by engineering efforts 27:40 - Is it possible to automate everything for security? 32:56 - Advice on getting started with creating detections Keep in touch with Nick Hakmiller on LinkedIn Reach out to Nick on Panther’s Community Slack Stay up to date with Nick’s work by viewing Panther Analysis Learn more about Panther Labs

Today’s guests are our very own hosts! Ron and Chris. Together they tackle everything that surrounds threat intelligence by answering both the hard and easy questions. Between the stories they share about past experiences, and the facts behind threat intelligence, you will learn something new, and that’s a promise! In essence, threat intelligence is taking the information about threats or things that can go wrong and applying it to their network and company. It’s the processing, collection and analyzation of data to understand threat actors, motives, targets and attack behaviors. Key Takeaways 1:10 Episode starts 2:39 Threat intelligence 3:00 Ron & Chris share what threat intelligence means to them 6:33 Organizations and threat intelligence 8:39 Back in the day 12:54 Benefits of threat intelligence 15:08 Skills needed to be in threat intelligence 19:22 Networking 23:34 E.A.S.Y. Links: Email Ron & Chris Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Hacker Valley Merch!

Today in the studio, we have Olivia Herriford, whose great and exceptional work is focused on equity in technology. Olivia is the Regional Director and Employer Engagement at Bay Area Community College Consortium. Olivia’s background is in technology, and with the Bay Area Community College Consortium, they support 28 community colleges in the San Francisco Bay region. She often tells people she has what one would call an “ancient” computer science degree which she earned in 1973. Olivia takes us back to what it was like to be a black woman in the mid-70s working with hardware and software engineers in the area of hardware design. Sadly, she experienced a rather hostile work environment. In today’s world, Olivia believes one of the best things we can do for reaching out to younger people is instill confidence. These young people do not need to be swayed by comparing themselves to others, but rather realize we all bring something unique to the table. Everyone needs to understand their own capabilities and power. Key Takeaways: 2:26 Olivia’s background 6:38 How Olivia ended up where she is 15:45 How do we change the environment 17:17 Progress & future 20:42 Making an impact 23:04 Cultivating conversations 26:22 Equity in technology 29:08 Advice for awareness 32:35 Connecting with Olivia Links: Olivia on LinkedIn Olivia on YouTube Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Sponsored by Panther Labs

Welcome back to the Hacker Valley Studio podcast. I'm sure you've heard of the term personal brand, and maybe you've asked yourself, what does it mean and how do I promote it. In this episode, we speak to someone that helps others develop their personal brand. We speak to Stephen Hart, entrepreneur, marketer, and brand strategist. We've known Stephen since way back. He's been a huge supporter, and someone that's helped develop our podcast and our branding. And this episode is nothing but pure gold and entertainment. Can't wait for everyone to listen. Let's jump right into it. Our guest this episode is Stephen Hart. Stephen is the founder of Isles Media LLC, creator of Brand in Demand, and podcast host of Trailblazers.fm. podcast. Stephen always starts conversations off from a place of gratitude. He is grateful for his daughters, who have given him a “home base to run everything through. Beyond that, his is a Marketer and a podcast host for the last five, five and a half years. He is a brand strategist and the creator of an amazing program that he will talk about in a bit here. Listen in as Stephen gives some great tips, and a special invitation. 00:59 Welcome and Intro to Steven Hart 2:16 Steven shares his background 3:45 Become a brand in demand 6:06 Creating a digital footprint 8:15 Desire to start a podcast 9:08 Share others success through Trailblazers.fm 10:00 Creating a course for others 11:23 Brand Management 13:05 Business Digital Footprint vs. Personal footprint 14:39 Brand does not equal logo 16:55 Recreating himself 18:26 Getting clear on goals 19:55 Lacking clarity & how to get clear 24:00 Foundation to your vision 27:10 Entrepreneurship can live simultaneously with employment 30:46 Investment vs. spending 32:45 Getting started on your own vision 35:00 Who do you want to serve? 37:47 Discount for Hacker Valley Tribe Stephen Hart on LinkedIn Stephen Hart on Twitter Stephen Hart on Instagram Visit Stephen on his website, stephenahart.com Join Brand in Demand, brandindemand.co Coupon code: hackervalley200 Hacker Valley website, hackervalley.com Hacker Valley Studio on LinkedIn Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter Hacker Valley Studio on Instagram Sponsored by AttackIQ

It has been way too long in the making. But it's finally here! We have Hacker Valley merchandise available! We have shirts, we have hats, we have sweatshirts that you can purchase. You are in the Hacker Valley Studio with your hosts Ron and Chris. Welcome back to the show. Today in the studio, we've brought in Nikki Ivey. Nikki is a B2B revenue growth and startup culture leader. She's recognized as a 2020 LinkedIn top voice, and she is the co-founder of SDR Defenders community. For those that want to get to know Nikki and understand where she come from and what she is up to today, Nikki shares she works with Fortune 500 companies to help them make their outsides match their insides. In short, she helps folks close a gap, so everybody has access to a greater sense of belonging and purpose in the work that they do. Sadly, Nikki started down this path because she felt she often did not belong or was not often treated like she belonged. Her mom says her first full sentence was, “That's not fair.” She actually studied broadcasting and journalism but then discovered that tech sales was an outlet for all of those things that she cared about. Nikki cares deeply about culture and has experienced so many issues as she has gone through her career. The one thing she would love to change is people not being the gatekeepers rather be stewards. Nikki has a lot of advice on “cancelling the cold call” and making connections. She is full of beautiful ideas to make everyone, from top to bottom in a company feel included, important and connected. Key Takeaways: :58 Episode starts with Ron and Chris 1:40 Nikki shares her background 2:55 Bringing people into the fold 5:18 Culture issues 7:57 Nikki’s superpower 10:00 Making connections 14:20 Doubling down 19:09 Being genuine 23:11 Building your brand 26:54 Final piece of advice from Nikki Links: Email Nikki Nikki on LinkedIn Nikki on Instagram Nikki on Twitter Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Get your Hacker Valley Merch here!

Today in the studio, we have Alexis Robertson, Director of Diversity and Inclusion at a large law firm and a recovering lawyer. Alexis kicks in with a bit about herself, and shares “I am director of diversity inclusion at a large law firm but spent the first 10 years or so of my career dedicated to laws, going to law school and practicing as a lawyer for about seven and a half years before leaving legal practice closing in on six years ago, I grew up in the suburbs of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, spent most of my life in the Midwest, except for time spent in DC at American University for undergrad and then I went to the University of Michigan for law school. That's me in a nutshell.” Alexis shares throughout this episode how her health, exercise and food habits all became habit with some very big changes. It isn’t about getting healthy; it is about a long journey of being healthy. You will hear a little bit about her food choices and why she made them, the exercises she partakes in, and how she balances it all. Key Takeaways: 1:27 Welcome 2:23 Alexis shares her background 3:25 Serendipity 5:33 Self-improvement journey 12:41 Healthy mentality with food 17:20 Next steps 21:12 Getting back on track 24:07 Fitness journey 28:16 Looking forward 31:13 Advice to others 33:17 Staying in touch with Alexis Alexis on LinkedIn Alexis on Instagram The Path & The Practice Podcast Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Learn more about our sponsor ByteChek.

In this episode, we talk to our special guest, Natasha Barnes. Natasha is the Associate Director and the CEO Action for Racial Equity Fellow of Protiviti. She is a certified mindfulness workplace facilitator and mindfulness-based stress reduction. Natasha is part of a movement to answer the question of does corporate America have a role to play in advancing racial equity within our nation, and essentially improving our overall societal well-being. Technology serves as a way to propel the conversation forward, and recognizing global interconnectedness. Listen in for all of Natasha’s insights! Key Takeaways: 1:02 Welcome back 2:16 Natasha shares her background 3:11 Natasha’s journey through wellness 4:23 Mindfulness purpose 6:28 Instructing others 10:27 Corporate role 10:52 Four pillars 15:06 Her journey 17:24 Creating solutions 19:24 Progress 21:39 Equity through mindfulness and technology 26:48 Impact Natasha on LinkedIn CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Sponsored by ByteChek

In this episode, we've brought in a special guest, Kelsey Hightower. Kelsey is Principal Engineer at Google, and also co-author of Kubernetes: Up and Running: Dive into the Future of Infrastructure. To start the show, Kelsey shares he considers himself a self-taught engineer. He started his life out as a small business owner and then moved to a system administrator. Now, he is at Google. Kelsey’s fascination with cyber started post High School. Rather than go to college, he jumped into, tech support, consulting, dropping cat five cable, but about 2004ish he really digs into the world of open source and all the things that you can do with it as a user and as a contributor. When it comes to community and customers, Kelsey felt they were one in the same. However, in the last five years or so, he has kind of changed that a little bit, thinking everyone is probably in your community. The willing the ones that are willing to pay you money, we call those customers. And then the conversation turns to comedy, and his journey through comedy management and performances. Along with this comes discussion about acquiring skills. Finally, Kelsey shares advice to listeners! Key Takeaways: 1:00 Welcome back 2:18 Kelsey shares his background 3:31 Community and customers 4:40 Professional purpose 6:00 Retirement thoughts 10:31 Journey in comedy 14:35 Getting better 16:28 Propelling forward 20:12 Minimalism 22:18 Immersion journey 25:25 Don’t miss the moment 27:00 Exceeding expectations 37:56 It’s ok to start! 39:25 How to keep up to date with Kelsey Kelsey on Twitter Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Sponsored by Attack IQ Attack IQ Academy

In this episode, have James Hadley, CEO of Immersive Labs, and we talk about the best ways to learn in cybersecurity. James starts the show with his background and what he is doing today, which is Immersive Labs. But, he spent a lot of time in different organizations prior to that. When it came to education, James found he had quite a poor memory, so he would always learn better through doing things rather than reading about things. Things would go in one ear and out the other. In addition to learning styles, they all discuss measuring education. When it comes to measuring academics, for James it is all about the outcomes you want people to achieve. They all agree that storytelling is incredibly powerful. James shares a few of his own drawing back on his incredible journey. And, of course, they round out the show with how to stay in touch and up to date with James. Key Takeaways: 1:02 Welcome back 2:24 James’ background 5:06 Education experience 5:46 Changes 7:18 Measuring education 9:14 Balancing in testing 11:40 Biggest a’ha 13:14 Feedback 15:54 Learner vs. learner 17:37 Skill behind catching the bad guys 19:20 Applying knowledge 21:53 Geeks in the basement 23:47 The best job in cyber 26:30 Advice 27:58 How to stay in touch with James Links: James on Immersive Labs James on LinkedIn Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Learn more about our sponsor ByteChek.

In this episode, we brought back fan-favorite, John Strand. He is owner of Black Hills Information Security, a SANS instructor, and a mentor to many in the industry. Johns starts the show sharing a little bit about his background and what he is doing today. Ron and Chris dive a little bit deeper into John’s earlier life asking what his personal superpower, personal or professional, and when did that power really came about in his life? John shares his experiences with failure, which he feels are key to where he is at today. How everyone needs to get comfortable with struggles, failures and hardships. On top of that, one needs to be able to laugh at themself. Key Takeaways 1:02 Back with fan favorite John Strand 2:21 John shares his background 3:38 John’s superpower 5:51 Going through the grind to learn 8:30 Partnerships 11:44 Getting a head start 14:58 The entertainment factor 16:36 Journey through being an instructor 19:35 Pay what you can concept 25:53 Education systems 29:18 Advice from John Links: John Strand blog. John Strand on Twitter. Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Learn more about our sponsor ByteChek.

This is the finale of Know Thyself. What an incredible journey, we feel like this entire experience flew by so fast, we got to talk to so many incredible people about knowing yourself, knowing your team, knowing your tech stack, knowing your environment, and even knowing your story. Make your organization better make your security posture better, strive for impact, what are the most high leverage things that you can do today to make everybody's lives easier, or more safe, and then yield the feedback, there might be some things that you might be missing, you might need to ask questions, ask for feedback, get some information from your stakeholders, what what are you thinking about that I might not be thinking about? asking these different things is how you know thyself. And this is how you get to know the people that are around you, your peers, your stakeholders, the more knowledge you have got started with that Sun Tzu quote, in the very beginning of the podcast, if you know yourself and you know your enemy, you need not fear the results of 100 battles. So if you really understand yourself, and you have good threat intelligence, understanding the externals, you have good vulnerability management that understands the externals and the internals, if you mash all that information together, I think you'll be able to do great things with your cybersecurity program. Key Takeaways 0:02 Introduction to the show 0:49 Our Sponsor, Axonius 2:09 Welcome back 2:31 Reflecting on Know Thyself 3:17 Recap This Seasons Guest 3:22 Marcus Carey 4:17 John Strand 5:05 Aaron Reinhart & Jamie Dixon 5:54 Chaos Engineering 7:12 Lenny Zeltser, asset inventory 7:54 Kevin Allison, Storytelling is a soft skill 10:19 John Strand 12:13 Can we do better? 13:54 What kind of leader are you? 14:26 Do you have unsupported devices? 17:34 Ask yourself these questions 13:33 Go back to the EASY Framework 21:50 Learning 23:29 Exploration 24:00 Immersion 27:28 Reach Hacker Valley Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter Follow Ron Eddings on Twitter Follow Chris Cochran on Twitter Supported by Axonius

In this masterclass of HVB season 2 we brought in a master story teller in Kevin Allison. The biggest thing is to get a person to understand, don't just summarize, don't just walk us through a Wikipedia like where you're just giving us a broad overview. And you're explaining; it’s important to remember sensory details that will help us see almost like movie scenes, what was happening between people. That is what brings the story alive. So that's a good case right there where the bones of the story were incredible. Like that's just on paper and an incredible overview of a story, but it's not going to work unless you can fill in all those sensory details that bring it alive and make it emotional for us. Storytelling is a soft skill that offers the ability to contextualize cybersecurity in a manner that any organization can understand to allow their business to stay safe. Key Takeaways: 0:00 Previously on the show 2:37 Kevin introduction 3:20 Episode begins 3:39 Where Kevin is today 7:58 Kevin’s origin story 12:04 Cybersecurity is performing 17:08 Storytelling for business 21:00 Engineering a story 26:12 Authentic storytelling 34:54 Speaking isn’t perfect 41:02 Where to find Kevin The Story Studio RISK!: True Stories People Never Thought They’d Dare To Share RISK! Podcast Twitter Facebook Instagram Risk Show Podcast Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter Follow Ron Eddings on Twitter Follow Chris Cochran on Twitter Sponsored by Axonius

If want to get into computer security, you're going to learn to love it, you're going to have to be successful, because a lot of computer security isn't just about bits and bytes, it's really about effectively communicating what needs to be done to the right people. In this episode wet have the incredible John Strand. Organizations need to become more proactive, and see where those weak spots are to protect themselves from something like ransomware. You need to run a pen test because you can have somebody literally launch those attacks, and identify those weaknesses in those vulnerabilities before the bad people do. What's the gap that we can all learn from? It's passwords. By and large for most users, passphrases are the way to go. And, multi-factor authentication is actually a very sound strategy. If you look at one key tenant of computer security, complexity is the enemy of computer security. And security is constantly trying to catch up and protect against yesterday's attacks. So, the future is more connected, it's more complicated. And the problem is, we still have people that use weak passwords, we still have people that click on links from strangers. And ultimately, when we're looking at that future, you're going to see the exact same problems that we've always had complicated on a much, much, much, much, much larger scale. As things get more and more pushed to the cloud. There'll be no shelter here, the front line is everywhere. World of computer security. Key Takeaways: 0:00 Previously on the show 2:02 John introduction 2:44 Episode begins 2:47 What John is doing today 3:45 John’s core tenets 5:51 How pen testing is “Blue” 6:17 Why understanding fundamentals matters 8:55 Ransomware 10:41 Organizations need to be prepared 11:58 Password gap 13:37 Password philosophy 17:07 Multi-factor authentication 21:40 What to do today 24:24 New problems 26:44 Learn your own network 28:26 Where to find John John Strand on Twitter John Strand on LinkedIn Black Hills Information Security Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter Follow Ron Eddings on Twitter Follow Chris Cochran on Twitter Sponsored by Axonius

In this episode, we brought in two exceptional guests that are no stranger to chaos. In fact, they've identified ways to engineer for chaos. In the studio, we have Aaron Rinehart, CTO, and founder at Verica. We also have Jamie Dicken, former manager of applied security at Cardinal Health and current director at Resilience. These two are also authors of Security Chaos Engineering. If you haven't read that book it's already out, you should check it out. Chaos engineering is the technique of introducing turbulent conditions into a distributed system to try to determine the conditions that cause it to fail before it actually fails. So they simplify it. What we do with chaos engineering is learn about the system without experiencing the pain of an outage or an incident. You learn to trust your gear by testing. The biggest impact really came once we understood how security chaos engineering fits into the bigger security picture. It's not about just being a part of the latest and greatest techniques and having the excitement of doing something that's cutting edge, but security chaos engineering at the end of the day. It's useless unless what you've learned drives change. Key Takeaways: 0:00 Previously on the show 1:40 Aaron Rinehart and Jamie Dixon introduction 2:08 Episode begins 2:59 What Jamie and Aaron are doing today 3:13 What Jamie is doing 4:13 What Aaron is doing 5:00 Discuss chaos engineering 9:26 Importance of chaos engineering 10:16 Myths of chaos engineering 12:55 Chaos engineering customer impacts 17:34 Learning to trust the test and end result 19:03 Reader and customer feedback 22:21 Chaos engineering gone wrong 27:39 Implementing change in cybersecurity 28:11 Building a team of experts 39:08 Getting involved in chaos engineering 41:09 Tools for listeners 43:25 Keeping up with Aaron and Jamie Aaron Rinehart on Twitter [email protected] Jamie Dicken on Twitter Verica on LinkedIn Verica Free Book Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter Follow Ron Eddings on Twitter Follow Chris Cochran on Twitter Sponsored by Axonius

In this episode, we brought back our good friend Lenny Zeltser. Lenny is Chief Information Security Officer at Axonius. He's developed a mindset of looking at security components as building blocks to create a holistic security environment. To this day, even while operating as an executive, he has wisdom that anyone can learn from. Quite often, the less sexy aspects of information security are ignored, when in reality, you need to understand what resources you're supposed to protect, which assets are compromised, and the infrastructure for your organization. People jump right into fighting the big fires, and as you know, there is a reason why there are so many day-to-day urgent activities. To start moving in a positive direction, Lenny shares this advice, “Understand what the major data sources you can tap into rather than thinking ‘let me create this one new way of serving everything I have are.’” The information is there. Think about three sources of information that might get you the biggest bang for the buck! Key Takeaways: 0:00 Previously on the show 1:40 Lenny introduction 2:05 Episode begins 3:10 What Lenny is doing today 5:35 The evolution of Lenny’s career 8:30 Parallels between beginning and now 10:38 Journey and growth of REMnux 13:00 Challenges Lenny has faced 15:21 Collaboration surprises 17:18 Horror stories 20:18 Enforcing policies 23:34 Asset management 26:08 New tech and trends 28:45 Biggest discovery about self 32:38 Advice for others 34:24 Keeping up with Lenny Links: What Lenny Does Lenny on the Web Follow Lenny on Twitter Lenny on LinkedIn Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter Follow Ron Eddings on Twitter Follow Chris Cochran on Twitter Sponsored by Axonius

In this episode of Hacker Valley Blue, we brought in a guest who has been on a journey of transformation of self and technology. Our guest is Chani Simms, managing director of Meta Defence Labs. We talk about what is essential for cybersecurity. If there was a magic box that could solve an issue, what problem would Chani want solved? “People!” They need to be trained, and care, and have buy in. They must be devoted to what they’re doing. They need cultural awareness and support – it isn’t easy and the hardest job. When it comes to leadership, organizations need to use people already in the organization. It is important to know what they’re trying to do. You have to use security as an enabler. Leadership is responsible for communicating objectives and goals. Key Takeaways 0:00 Previously on Hacker Valley Blue 1:36 In this episode 3:10 Background and day job 5:37 Cyber essentials 13:46 Keeping up to date 15:26 Access control 17:07 Security hygiene 19:48 Magic box 21:32 Leadership fundamentals 26:22 Formula 1 analogy 28: 46 Wrap up Links: Chani on LinkedIn Chani on Twitter Email: [email protected] Sponsored by Axonius Hacker Valley Studio Chris Cochran on LinkedIn Ron Eddings on LinkedIn

Know thy organization is key! Wise words from the powerful Marcus J. Carey. Don’t be afraid to admit the bad stuff and be honest about the situation. Most of the time people get fired because they are scared to admit the failure. You have to build a tight network of people you trust who will be brutally honest with you. You need those people who are going to tell you the truth. Other people will see your superpowers before you do. Superman didn’t know he was different, but others saw the differences and the strengths he didn’t even realize he had. Always pay attention to how people react to what you do, then you will figure out what you are really good at. We over emphasize what we suck at and ignore what we are good at. Don’t do that. You need to understand how amazing, awesome and beautiful you are. Double down and double down hard. Do not be afraid to show your talents and be confident in your superpower. In security, there is a role for everybody. Key Takeaways: 1:40 In this episode 2:12 Welcome 3:40 Marcus background 4:57 What lead Marcus to cyber 7:09 Self discovery 9:48 Creations and inventions 14:22 Gathering and retaining information 17:53 Auxiliary skill 21:35 Abilities and mission 25:26 Overlooked areas 31:44 Advice to others 35:41 Staying up-to-date with Marcus Links: Marcus on Twitter Marcus' Books on Amazon Marcus on LinkedIn Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter Follow Ron Eddings on Twitter Follow Chris Cochran on Twitter Sponsored by Axonius

Welcome to Hacker Valley Blue Season 2 “Know Thyself”. Instead of focusing on the enemy – threat intelligence and environment, we are focusing on knowing yourself and security stack. You need to know the business, but also the fundamentals of security landscape. Without the fundamentals, you cannot reach the level of success you desire. Getting laser sharp on computer networks and how computers speak to each other. Without understanding how each of the pieces work together, you cannot make strategic decisions. We have many guests this season that will teach more about the fundamentals. Stop ignoring the fundamentals and find synchronicity among your team. Building this team makes an impact for the business. You will have positive outcomes. Stop sweeping the issues under the rug to make better decisions. Cybersecurity is a lot like playing a game of chess using pieces, policies, and guidelines. Opponents use the same things but don’t play by the rules. You continually must up your game and face the opponent who isn’t playing fairly. Knowing business, team, story and self is so important and that is what is coming up on the rest of the season. Key Takeaways 0:00 Welcome 2:00 Kick-off 3:13 The fundamentals 5:46 How do you get people excited? 7:07 Making an impact on a business 8:43 Where does one begin to know thyself 10:32 Formula 1 analogy 12:32 Leadership 16:00 Superpowers 19:38 Three Rs of memory 24:58 Chaos engineering 27:56 The brother’s trip 30:11 Stepping into unknown 31:15 Play at work 32:00 Season recap Links: Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter Follow Ron Eddings on Twitter Follow Chris Cochran on Twitter This entire season is sponsored by Axonius

Imagine, for a moment, you’re driving for Uber, and one of your riders changes your life forever! That’s the story we are sharing with you. It's all about Kendrick Trotter, the entrepreneur that has had an incredible journey in technology. Kendrick talks to us about that and the relationship between sales and engineering. Ron and Chris are glad to be back with Kendrick Trotter who is helping diversify technology through partnerships with top technology firms. He is excited and humbled to be part of this! Kendrick shares his passion about Us in Technology. Their mission is “We are going to diversify the tech industry with more underrepresented people.” This is a very broad definition intentionally. People associate diversity to black or brown, but really, it is variety. Us in Technology partner with people who have coachability, drive, intelligence, and integrity. He feels they are teaching these mentees to be an entrepreneur, not a worker. Change won’t happen until influential positions are more diverse. To stay in touch with Kendrick or to learn more, visit his website, LinkedIn or Instagram. Thank you Key Takeaways 0:00 Introduction to the show 1:03 Welcome back 2:06 Kendrick joins the show 2:44 Kendrick shares his background 6:17 Catalyst to the trajectory for Kendrick 9:18 Power of Networking 13:35 Complexities of sales and engineering 15:53 Maintaining confidence 18:32 Big lesson learned 21:18 Diversity in the industry 26: 37 Surprises along the way 30:03 When change happens 30:53 Advice to those wanting into tech 32:39 Best ways to stay in touch with Kendrick 33:20 Thank you Links: Us In Technology Website Kendrick's Instagram Kendrick on LinkedIn Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Learn more about our sponsor ByteChek.

In this episode, we have the powerful Tamas Henning, Director of Security Engineering at Marqeta and also Trust and Safety Advisor for XR Safety Initiative. Tamas got started in technology at a very young age and that is credited to his dad. In the Early 90s his dad built a software company, and he was a super curious kid. By 6th grade, he learned trigonometry just so he could recreate Tetris. Take a listen to this incredible origin story and passion project of securing XR. Key Takeaways 0:00 Intro 1:22 Show starts with Ron & Chris 1:50 Introduction to Tamas Henning 2:25 Tamas shares his background 3:30 Introduction to tech 6:48 Challenges faced 8:20 How Tamas’ dad feels about him 9:50 Brotherly relationships 10:50 Why security? 17:37 Kids and exposure to the internet 21:27 Thoughts about information collection 24:22 XR and what it really means 27:25 Making the internet safer 29:58 Advice to people who want to make an impact 31:01 Best ways to keep up with Tamas Links: Tamas on Twitter Tamas on LinkedIn Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Learn more about our sponsor ByteChek.

In this episode, we welcome Chani Simms, Managing Director of Meta Defence Labs as well as Founder and Chief Architect of She Ciso Exec. Chani tells us the story of her rise from tragedy during childhood to being triumphant today. 0:00 Intro 1:03 In this episode with Chani Simms 2:22 Chani shares a bit about her background 3:35 Exposure to IT 5:24 First cold call experience 6:24 Chani’s early years in Sri Lanka 12:25 How did Chani recover from the trauma 13:08 What gave Chani hope 16:24 How a specific billboard spoke to her 18:12 Surprises along the way 20:35 Superpowers 23:00 Emotional intelligence 25:40 Having a good relationship with others 28:43 Chani’s advice to others 31:08 Connecting with Chani Links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chani-simms Twitter: https://twitter.com/ChaniSimms Website: www.metadefencelabs.com TedX Talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/chani_simms_stop_chasing_the_magic_security_box Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio. Learn more about our sponsor AttackIQ and enroll in The AttackIQ Academy!

Vote here: https://www.hackervalley.com/vote It might seem impossible... but we need an incredible amount of votes to have a shot to win this People's Choice Webby. Who would have thought that two black cybersecurity professional with home studios, would have a shot against these huge media companies. But this prize is more than the trophy or the title. We are representing cybersecurity. We are representing the independent creators. We are representing the underrepresented. The audacious part... We believe we will win this thing. 30 seconds of your time can put us in the history books.

In the studio today is Jimmy Sanders, a mentor, technician and all-around leader. Jimmy is the head of information security at Netflix DVD where he secures data and systems from cyber threat while building resilient compliance programs across technology, financial services, and healthcare organizations. Jimmy is here to talk about what we are worth in technology and cyber security. He is always full of advice and knowledge and is always promoting positive change in our community. To start this podcast, Jimmy shares a little about his background and how he came to the role he is in now for Netflix. Along with his career background, he shares all the organizations he is involved with. Jimmy talks briefly about what happened to him that encouraged him to go 120% and then some in this career choice. He didn’t find his passion in technology until 12 years after graduating college. You will hear how the possibility of never walking again affected his work ethic. Allan and Jimmy talk at length about those 12-years where Jimmy was stumbling, bouncing from college to college, to flunking out of college. It took those years for him to discover how the absence of passion can truly feel. The show closes discussing knowing how to recognize opportunities and taking them. In addition, they talk about how important it is to know your worth, recognize your value and that everything in life or work is negotiable. You will only be better than your job description if you make it that way. Key Takeaways: 0:00 Intro 1:27 Episode begins 2:28 Jimmy Sanders introduced 2:40 Jimmy shares his background 4:20 Jimmy shares how he made his way into cyber security 6:28 What happened to Jimmy that got him going headstrong into cyber security 8:57 For 12-years, Jimmy stumbled through life – what did he learn and do? 10:40 Journey into his career choice and how it skyrocketed 13:00 How does Jimmy stay fresh and on top of advancements 14:54 Jimmy shares his “superpower” 17:55 Making the most of opportunities and getting into that mindset 20:15 Jimmy shares how to know your worth and understand your value 23:35 Negotiations when looking for a job 25:10 Jimmy’s hopes and objectives for the Technology Collaborative Summit which Cyber Ranch is hosting 27:26 Advice to those questioning their value in their cyber security job 28:55 Thank you and how to keep in touch Links: Sign up for the April 27th event 3:30 PM – 5:00 PM Pacific Time: www.techwc.org Jimmy Sanders on LinkedIn Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Learn more about our sponsor ByteChek. Vote for Hacker Valley Studio to win a Webby!

In this special announcement, we talk about the Webby's, the incredible honor it is, and the stiff competition we are up against. Vote and help make our dream become reality here: https://hackervalley.com/vote

In this episode, we welcome Gabriela Ariza, a cybersecurity practitioner, influence, and wealth builder. We talk about her incredible story and how she got into social media influencing. Gabi started her IT journey in web development and then decided to transition to cybersecurity. She now works in protecting and analyzing government infrastructure for state and county governments across the United States. In addition, Gabi has founded a non-profit called HaITian Common Space. 0:00 - Intro 1:04 - In this episode 2:03 - Gabi introduced 5:42 - The story of where Gabi felt the magic for cybersecurity 7:07 – Special segment on CNBC 9:10 – Mindset of earning and saving 12:28 – Influence of parents 14:54 – The launch of Gabi’s nonprofit 15:50 – Superpowers 17:34 – Goals 22:23 – What’s next 23:17 – The impact 24:39 – Thank you 24:52 – Connecting with Gabi Instagram: fab_millennial Website: gabrielaariza.com Nonprofit: haitiancommonspace.org Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Learn more about our sponsor ByteChek. Vote for Hacker Valley Studio to win a Webby!

In this featured episode of Hacker Valley Studio podcast, Ron and Chris are joined by Sarah Groen, founder and CEO of Bell & Bly Travel, a luxury travel advisory firm. Bell & Bly Travel helps executives, entrepreneurs, and their families take a holistic view of their vacation planning, allowing them to save time, enjoy amazing experiences they can't plan on their own, and make lasting memories with loved ones. Sarah is a contributing columnist for the CEOWORLD magazine and is the host for the Luxury Travel insider podcast. In most of our episodes, we talk about work, the grind, and getting better every single day. In this episode, we talk about something a little different; talking about taking time for yourself and maximizing vacations and time off, time with family, friends, and time for experiences. Sarah is no stranger to experiences; she has traveled the world and is an expert at planning vacations. We brought her into the studio to talk about getting the most out of our time off. Her background is varied; she has an extremely random resume. She is from South Texas and lives in Houston. She started in the financial world but wanted to get off the corporate rat race track because she didn’t enjoy what she was doing. She went back to business school, not knowing what she wanted to do, but focused on entrepreneurship. After school, Sarah went back to Houston and did many things, such as investing in an energy software startup and being an accelerator that she co-founded. She worked at Uber - launching and running UberEats in Houston and Phoenix. Finally, Sarah realized that if she was going to put that much time and effort into a business, she wanted it to be her own and build her own equity. So, she started looking into companies to invest in and buy. She finally began to focus on her passion for travel. She describes herself as crazy about travel and shares how many countries she has visited and continents - and it’s a lot! She is always thinking about where she is going next. It all started due to her early experience where at 15 she went to Germany for an entire summer. She loves planning travel for families who have kids at that age which is an impetus to loving travel. This love led her to use all her free time for travel. Sarah loves all her travel experiences for so many reasons. Trips fulfill you in many different ways. Her ability to share what she loves led to her acceptance at Stanford. Travel reminds her that she is so small in the world. There are so many other ways to think and live, that when she travels, she is reminded of that. As the episode progresses, Sarah describes how travel benefits the mind and health. There is a lot of research that shows how vacations and travel is good for you. People need it! One example is neuroplasticity. If something brand new happens, you will remember it more. This keeps your brain more agile and to be more creative. Travel puts you in a different environment and helps create new neuropathways. It is a fact that Americans are skipping tons of vacation days; there are millions of vacation days left on the table. As that number goes up, all sorts of things are happening such as anxiety, mental health issues and other things that are symptoms of working too hard. In order to plan travel for groups, they bring people in and ask multiple questions to get to the bottom of what’s most important about this vacation and why. What helps them relax. This helps discover what is needed most by the travelers. Making the most of the vacations is different for every person. Some want to do everything, and some don’t want to do much at all. The needs are different for everybody! Luxury travel means something different, however. She hesitates to put the word “luxury” in marketing, etc. Generations want different things and luxury means true customization. People don’t want to feel like a number anymore. She is catering toward personalized and customized things. What does customized mean? How does it get specific? What do people look at? Sarah can do and plan things that are “ungoogleable.” There are so many experiences that can be customized based on interests and passions. These are “behind the scenes” and not amongst the packed tours that one encounters when on typical vacations. Sarah shares how networking is important in the role as a luxury travel planner. She specializes in clients’ needs and wants, and they plan the world. That can only happen through fantastic networks and partnerships. They have worked with them and keep up with them on a regular basis. They have vetted partners in every corner of the world, and are kept up-to-date and help curate these specific itineraries and ideas. Doesn’t matter if it is art or basketball, they make it happen due to their network. How people spend their money is personal, but don’t save it for a day you are never going to spend it. If there is something you want to do, make a plan to make it happen. Lay out what you want to a

Anne Marie Zettlemoyer is Vice President of Security Engineering and Divisional Security Officer at MasterCard. She’s a mentor to many cybersecurity practitioners and a visiting fellow at the National Security Institute at George Mason University As far back as elementary school, making sure everyone was treated properly and respected was important for Anne. In college, despite not knowing the first thing about cycling Anne’s determination to do the right thing led her to participate in a 600-mile charity ride to raise money for research towards a vaccine against HIV. Anne Marie started in Business and holds an MBA in Organizational Behavior and Corporate Strategy, she started on the business side and worked under many titles like Analyst, Controller, Auditor, and Strategist. About 12 or 13 years ago she fell in love with Security because it speaks to her mission of protecting and defending others. Ron shares about how mentors have helped him learn cybersecurity and asks Anne Marie about when she’s helped others climb the security mountain. Anne Marie recalls being the only woman presenter at a Cybersecurity conference and receiving a certain lack of respect until she demonstrated exactly how much expertise and experience she had. She spoke to some other women in attendance and encouraged them to apply themselves in the same field assuring them that they could also succeed, two years later one of the people she encouraged had become Senior Security Engineer. Chris asks about what it means to her to be able to show up with others now and whether she had someone like that for her own journey. Anne Marie shares about having to fight for everything herself. She expands that talent, grit, and many things are distributed throughout humanity but opportunity isn’t equally distributed. Anne Marie believes that those with the capability to find those who simply need an opportunity and lift them up have a certain responsibility to do so. That they can lift up those who will also lift up others. Ron asks Anne Marie about what it takes to make a great leader and supporter today. Anne Marie speaks a bit about leading from quiet influence and measures success more by effectiveness. The conversation shifts to how trust is needed when working to communicate risk and security decisions depending on who you’re working with as not everyone will share the same perspectives and backgrounds. Chris asks Anne Marie for a piece of advice for someone who may need someone to show up and protect them and she urges us to try new things, learn new things, expand our own possibilities. Anne Marie speaks about how showing up and trying to reach out can be enough to open new doors. 1:01 — Welcome back to the Hacker Valley Studio our guest this episode is Anne Marie Zettlemoyer. 2:43 — Anne’s amazing fluency in business and how she fell in love with security. 4:37 — The call Anne feels to respect others and make sure they’re respected. 6:48 — The causes to fight for even without complete preparation for the journey ahead. 8:58 — The extremes of a ride to do the right thing, and a helping hand to get you up a mountain. 11:30 — How you can never know the power of showing up for yourself. 13:30 — The power of showing up for others and being the only woman there. 15:34 — Two years after being the only woman cybersecurity presenter at a conference 19:04 — Anne shares about having to fight for everything herself. 20:30 — The responsibility for those that have the heart to find and uplift others. 22:00 — The conversation moves to topics about networking and great leadership. 24:00 — Why having a sense of humility is necessary for a leader and building a network. 25:30 — Learning to not re-invent the wheel. 27:20 — Creating a rounded perspective to build comprehensive solutions. 28:50 — Why you need trust from the folks you’re trying to protect. 31:00 — Advice for someone listening that needs someone to protect or stand up for them. 32:45 — Trying new things one step at a time can be enough. Links You can find Anne Marie Zettlemoyer on her Linkedin or her Twitter Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio. Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Learn more about our sponsor AttackIQ and enroll in The AttackIQ Academy!

Saam Motamedi is a General Partner at Greylock, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm. Saam has always found joy in finding individuals with the ideas and perspectives needed to become leaders and seeing them grow. As a student, Saam built student led organizations and nurtured the talent in his peers so they could grow as leaders. Saam started his professional journey on the product side of the industry working for a startup company, BladeIQ. The organization was an early adopter of machine learning and made innovations in the Customer Relationship Management solution market. The company was later acquired by Salesforce and their technology was integrated into the Salesforce CRM solutions. Saam shares that he enjoys helping entrepreneurs go from technical insight to an initial product. His superpower is leveraging his insight into how products and software solutions fit into the larger economic ecosystem. Saam also has success with helping companies continue to develop their products while bring new offerings using planned strategy. Ron asks Saam how he sorts through companies that are focused on artificial intelligence or machine learning in order to find great opportunities and people. Saam elaborates that he is focused less on the theoretical applications of these tools and more on how they are used to solve problems for customers. Saam provides perspective on the value of end user input in improving the quality of machine learning itself. Chris asks Saam about advice about product market fit and how to ensure the company has the right timing. Saam shares that timing varies across customer segments. It is important to not only understand what customers want but be able to see what customers should want or what they’re going to want. The conversation touches upon how COVID-19 has shifted the venture capital landscape. Saam tells us that the amount of interesting ideas and products has actually increased, and that entrepreneurs need to understand what their own story is and how it is even more relevant today than perhaps two years ago. Ron asks Saam about the most exciting technology to him today. Saam remains enthusiastic about machine learning technology helping better decisions being made as well as automation helping free up time and more of the workforce to focus on higher valued tasks. Saam lets us know that it’s never too early to talk to Greylock and that some of the most impactful investments have been based on an idea and an understanding of the market the entrepreneur was aiming to disrupt. 0:00 — Intro 01:21 — Welcome Back to Hacker Valley today in the Studio, Saam Motamedi. 04:30 — Saam’s superpowers: understanding products, markets and people. 06:30 — Saam’s experience with the product innovation side 08:13 — Network building and finding talent 10:28 — Seeing the entrepreneur in people even before they see it in themselves 12:37 — Investing in solutions to important problems and not the technology they’re using. 14:17 — Creating a learning engine that actually learns over time 15:55 — Advice on having the right team and the right idea at the right time. 18:37 — Timing requires predicting what customers are going to want 20:09 — How the pandemic has shifted the entrepreneurial and VC landscapes 23:05 — Customer interactions and brand ambassadors shifting to digital channels 25:00 — Crawl before you walk before you run: how to grow a company 27:04 — Getting the right attention, standing out in a digital sales landscape 29:00 — Showing off your product and continuing to grow without high touch interactions 31:34 — Saam shares how security is more relevant than ever 33:10 — If you’ve got an idea and imagination it’s never too early to start talking to Greylock. 35:32 — Understanding your own story to build your own company. If you want to stay up to date with what’s going on with Saam you can follow him on twitter Saam Motamedi (@saammotamedi) or find him on linkedin Saam Motamedi - General Partner - Greylock Partners. Check out Greylock Partners to find out more about this venture capital firm and read their blog to learn more about what they’re doing. Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio. Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Learn more about our sponsor ByteChek.

Ashish Rajan is a Cloud Security leader, podcaster, investor and fashion expert. He’s the Melbourne chapter leader of the OWASP Foundation and the Head of Security & Compliance. Ashish makes full use of his expertise and shares his knowledge as founder of a Cloud Security academy as well as in his weekly Coffee with Ashish which streams on Twitch, linkedin and YouTube. Ashish shares that while doing his weekly cloud security livestreams from the streets of Melbourne he became a recognizable person. Dressing with the intention of presenting something different to people Ashish began changing the way people look at him as a cybersecurity person. Ron asks Ashish about people understanding his value and how that can be conveyed through being confident with self image and comfortable in your own skin. Ashish speaks about the difference that presenting a new image of a security expert makes in his own career, that sometimes folks in the industry don’t necessarily communicate enough with people who don’t already have that knowledge base and so there can be a gap. The conversation moves to how Ashish’s interests overlap and have grown throughout his cybersecurity practice and professional growth, he began meeting people more into sales over coffee in order to make more connections with other forward thinking professionals. Ashish’s mindset is that goals have to evolve especially when you’re able to meet them ahead of schedule, he applies this successfully to his Coffee with Ashish weekly show. Chris asks Ashish about his innovative mindset and a time he’s had to overcome an obstacle. His journey overcoming that is inspiring, after being let go from a job Ashish still believed there was reason to invest in the ideas and company. From there he began putting his time and energy into the cloud security academy and cloud security podcast using the motivation gained after that setback put in front of him as motivation to teach others how to fish in the cyber ocean. Ron and Chris talk with Ashish about legacy and Ashish shares that planting seeds will be the legacy he hopes for. Ashish hopes that making significant impact on other people’s lives in a positive way will become his. Ashish shares that finding mentors aligned with the goals that you have, starting on your goals will pay dividends. Impactful Moments 0:00 — Intro 2:05 — Welcome to Hacker Valley Studio with Ashish. 4:15 — Origin story of a Tinkerer and mastering the cheat codes. 6:10 — Trying new things and trying to innovate them creatively. 7:45 — Unintentionally stumbling into the fashion world. 9:00 — Transforming into an extroverted Security person. 10:33 — Diversifying Cybersecurity with fashion and putting yourself out there. 12:40 — Being comfortable in your own skin after putting yourself out there. 13:33 — Following in the footsteps of your parents. 16:00 — Discovering more than just security and learning how to sell. 18:00 — The organic origins of Coffee with Ashish. 20:00 — Overcoming obstacles and teaching others to fish. 22:10 — Making the right investments in helping other people. 24:10 — Ashish leveling up constantly and what’s next. 26:20 — Ashish’s advice for stepping into your own personal strength. 28:00 — The very online future and making your own media hub. Links: Connect with Ashish on LinkedIn and check out his podcast Coffee with Ashish. Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio. Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. If your experience with compliance has sucked, check out our friends at ByteChek and see what they can do for you.

Paul Rivera is the president and CEO of Def Logix, he built his own company from the ground up. Paul was born in the Bronx, NYC and grew up in both Queens, New York and Dallas/Fort Worth area of Texas. The two areas he grew up in couldn’t be more different and he faced a lot of social anxiety. In middle and high school Paul felt there was a difference between the things he worried about and the concerns of his peers. Young Paul would rather figure out how to improve himself than impress others with something more material. Eventually at the age of fifteen Paul quit school and instead began going to the library. There he spent time reading on his own. He went from reading science fiction to learning about the physics, chemistry and math behind it. In his twenties Paul moved back to New York for college and was working while attending school. Following in his hero Mr. Spock’s footsteps he took classes in: Logic, Philosophy and Computer Science. Paul fell in love with programming after building his own calculator application by using coding. Programming was a way to use computers to build things from his own imagination and engaging his creative side. He got his Computer Science degree in his mid twenties. Paul speaks about the difference between New York City and the Dallas Fort Worth Area and some of the interpersonal differences moving to a less diverse area and not fitting in. Ron asks Paul what the missing puzzle piece that led him on the education path he chose. The conversation between Paul, Ron and Chris touches on different ways of learning and thinking. Paul shares about the school of hard knocks and researching, he shares about having to research excessively can lead to potential missed opportunities. Chris asks about a challenge he faced building Def Logix. Paul talks about finding his way as a significant contract closed out, dealing with employees being discontent and having to conceptualize Def-Logix 2.0. Our hosts Ron and Chris speak about the burnout that can happen when tasks aren’t aligned with purpose. Paul shares that he enjoys creating solutions more than other tasks that are typically aligned with being at the top of a company. Paul had to learn to delegate more in order to grow the company. Towards the end of our conversation Paul shares some of his experiences with public speaking, something he was very uncomfortable with at first. It was necessary for him to get out of his comfort zone in order to keep growing. Impactful Moments During the Show 00:00 — Intro 01:35 — Welcome back to the Hacker Valley Studio and welcome to Paul Rivera. 03:05 — Learning the science behind the sci-fi. 04:25 — Why Paul quit school at 15 and his path back to education. 06:00 — Calculators and falling in love with programming. 07:40 — Thinking differently about clothing. 09:05 — Thinking outside the box with logic AND intuition instead of logic OR intuition. 10:31 — Paul’s key way of learning. 12:20 — Paul on building his own company and challenges faced. 14:20 — What would change if he closed shop and started again? 16:30 — The harebrained ideas, creating solutions and finding joy. 18:30 — Growth and getting out of your comfort zone Links You can find Paul Rivera on LinkedIn Check out Def-Logix a cybersecurity company that does research and development, software development and secure networks. Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio. Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Check out ByteChek they can help you establish your security program, automate your readiness assessment, and complete your SOC 2 audit faster.

In this episode we continue our conversation with Lee Kemp, a three time World Champion in Wrestling (1978, 1979 and 1982 all in the 74 kg weight class) and held the record for being the youngest World Champion. In addition to being a champion wrestler, Lee is a father, a wrestling coach, a public speaker, and an author. He learned many of the skill sets needed to navigate his life on the mat. A child of the 60’s, he was adopted at the age of 5, before adoption learned how to find his own contentment in the situation he was in. From a young age Lee learned how to focus on what’s important and tackle whatever he needed to get done. Our conversation with Lee Kemp resumes with Chris asking Lee a question about representation. Lee shares that there were other Black wrestlers that were successful before him and while Dan Gable was a direct inspiration he saw additional championship inspiration in Black wrestlers. Lee found representation and inspiration to one day own his own business working for Tom Burrell of Burrow Communications. He shares tremendous insight about race relations in the USA being further complicated by suppression of stories, like that of the mathematicians from Hidden Figures. When Lee’s family left Cleveland in 1968 they moved to Chardon, Ohio; this was almost an entirely White community. Growing up there Lee saw his family being accepted into this community and learned that mutual respect was possible. We ask Lee about what someone who wants to be a champion needs. Lee explains that putting your focus on someone else that is successful can help and that finding inspiration is a truly important thing. Listening is important, if someone like Lee tells you the steps that you need to take to truly become a champion it’s important to take the advice as a whole. Being the best isn’t the only measure of achievement, for Lee going for something with all your heart is meaningful. After winning World Championships and global competitions two years running Lee was on track mentally and physically to become an Olympic champion, but in March of 1980 President Jimmy Carter announced that the USA would not be participating at the Olympics. Lee explains how that opportunity being taken away impacts him even now. 40 years later the 2020 Summer Games have been delayed and Lee speaks a bit about that showing how the grit to be world champion endures. Impactful Moments During The Episode 00:00 — Intro 01:00 — Welcome back to Part 2 our conversation with Lee Kemp. 01:33 — Looking at what types of representation mattered to Lee. 03:49 — Representation making a difference on a professional level. 05:50 — Lee speaks about Tom Burrell, advertising and race. 06:59 — Seeing your own value and everyone seeing each other’s humanity. 07:53 — We’re all the same race. 08:39 — The examples that parents set. 10:10 — Leaving Cleveland and moving to Chardon in 1968. 12:09 — The respect Lee’s father received from his community. 13:24 — Lee speaks about the importance of listening and empathy. 15:22 — Putting yourself in the right environment to be a champion. 17:07 — Taking advice and finding motivations. 18:31 — Going for something with all your heart. 19:50 — A story of “Things not happening.” 21:04 — Resiliency and the Tokyo Olympics, lessons learned. 22:25 — Thanks to Lee Kemp and for listening to Part 2 of the Grit of Being World Champion Links: Learn more about Lee Kemp and pick up his book Winning Gold. Watch the great documentary Watch Wrestled Away: The Lee Kemp Story | Prime Video. Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio. Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Learn more about our sponsor ByteChek.

Our special guest this episode is Lee Kemp, a three time World Champion in Wrestling (1978, 1979 and 1982 all in the 74 kg weight class) and held the record for being the youngest World Champion. In addition to being a champion wrestler, Lee is a father, a wrestling coach, a public speaker, and an author. He learned many of the skill sets needed to navigate his life on the mat. A child of the 60’s, he was adopted at the age of 5, before adoption learned how to find his own contentment in the situation he was in. From a young age Lee learned how to focus on what’s important and tackle whatever he needed to get done. Lee’s childhood with his adoptive family involved a lot of hard work. His family moved from the city to a rural neighborhood and he worked on a farm. There was a certain strictness his father held, if farm work needed to get done it had to get done. Over the summers of Lee’s youth, he learned about finding contentment in hard work and became comfortable being uncomfortable. Lee started wrestling in high school in the 9th grade and made the varsity team in the 10th grade, his first season in varsity he won as many matches as he lost. The summer between the 10th and the 11th grade year was the turning point for young Lee. He attended a Wrestling Camp that the wrestler Dan Gable was at right before the Olympic games of 1972, what he learned from Dan Gable at that camp became the catalyst for Lee becoming a different wrestler and different person. Lee gained a new mindset from that wrestling camp with Dan Gable. Coach Lee went on to win the state championship as a junior in high school, defeating the defending state champion. As the episode progresses, Ron and Chris ask Lee about his philosophies on consistency. Lee describes that at each point in his journey to be a champion wrestler he took every opportunity to learn more about his game and his opponents. While Lee was in wrestling camp with Dan Gable, he was the only willing volunteer that would allow Dan to try out wrestling moves on him. Lee knew that if he could understand how one of the greatest wrestlers performed offensively and defensively he could at a minimum learn something new and potentially incorporate it into his style. Lee’s determination has always been contagious and a positive influence to his community. An example that Lee shares is the story of his wrestling teammate Pat Christenson. Before defeating Dan Gable, Wisconsin had a drought of national champions in wrestling. Pat Christenson shared with Lee after defeating Gable he realized he could aspire to become a world champion also. Impactful Moments During The Episode 01:30 - Welcome back to the Hacker Valley Studio. 01:56 - Introducing the three time world champion Lee Kemp. 03:04 - A child of the sixties and learning how to give back. 04:18 - Understanding where you come from and learning to be content. 07:01 - Characteristics of grit. 08:43 - Overcoming the biggest roadblock to success. 11:08 - Finding a worthwhile goal as a high school wrestler and learning from the best. 12:26 - The inflection point towards success for wrestler Lee Kemp 14:24 - The fateful wrestling camp experience of 1972. 16:25 - Watching your camp coach from the summer with Olympic Gold. 17:28 - Lee Kemp finds the opportunity to wrestle against his former wrestling camp Coach, the gold medal winner Dan Gable. 19:05 - How Lee stayed focused on wrestling Gable despite detractors and distractions. 21:20 - Finding a different mindset, finding a different Lee Kemp. 22:51 - Taking little steps of confidence towards goals. 24:11 - Lee Kemp being in the moment wrestling in the last 30 seconds against Gable. 25:53 - From being in the moment to being part of the moment. 27:30 - The reaction to breaking expectations 29:00 - A rivalry that couldn’t be played out in competition, an unofficial match between Kemp and Gable 31:00 - Moving mountains 32:57 - Inspiring future wrestling champions at University of Wisconsin 34:30 - Having a mindset and attitude for making things possible 36:30 - Thank you for listening to Part 1 of Lee Kemp on Hacker Valley. Links: Learn more about Lee Kemp and pick up his book Wrestled Away. Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio. Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Learn more about our sponsor ByteChek.

Introducing the Cyber Ranch Podcast and Allan Alford! Allan Alford is currently the Chief Technology Officer/Chief Information Security Officer at TrustMAPP. Allan Alford is a member of the Hacker Valley family and has launched a new show called the Cyber Ranch Podcast. Allan has been a CISO at a number of different companies and has a wealth of knowledge in Cybersecurity. Has about 20 years of Cybersecurity and has a background in product security. Allan is a tinkerer and a second generation information security practitioner. His father was a systems operator/administrator who specialized in Systems Security, his father brought their first IBM PC into the house while Allan was in middle school. Since that moment, Allan has always been interested in technology and had a group of friends who had the brand new tools of the time like the TI-99, TRS-80, IBM PC and Apple IIe. He and his friends were porting and writing games, hacking and war dialing. Allan’s mother was a school teacher and had house rules about television time, and so with an hour of TV a week Allan’s primary form of entertainment was reading. In high school Allan took a creative writing class where he found a passion for storytelling and reading novels. Before entering college Allan was confident in his technology skills and decided that studying Humanities would make a greater impact for him. While studying, Allan learned that there were many parallels between the study of humanities and technology. There was a vocabulary, grammar, and structure by which things operated that had a consistent set of rules. Allan learned that the correct application of grammar and vocabulary helped all things work properly. As the episode progresses, Allan shares while reading books, articles or other word based sources there’s a sort of internal voice that is within his mind that reads the words ‘out loud,’ however once he’s immersed in the book or text that the subvocalization fades and there’s a much more immediate type of onboarding of the information, the non-conscious reading voice. Chris shares that he describes this as the flow of learning. Allan also speaks of lucking into a prime slot on the KTCU college radio station and how he found his groove djing by deconstructing threads of music. He would put together his set by starting with a popular song and tracing it back from influence and inspirations. Allan also shares his thoughts on the importance of networking - And not all networking starting points being equal. With his success now he tries to create bridges and conversations through his network that promote the exchange of ideas and further conversations for people, Allan is hoping to do the same with his podcast - The Cyber Ranch. Professionally he’s embarking on a new journey as the Chief Technology Officer at TrustMapp and is currently learning how to be a great producer of Security technologies. Impactful Moments During the Show 0:00 - Welcome back to the Hacker Valley Studio! 01:30 - Welcome back to the Hacker Valley studio and welcome to the Cyber Ranch podcast 02:30 - Allan’s Professional Adventuring Card 03:00 - Allan’s tinkering background and a second generation info security professional 04:30 - Writing and porting video games as a youth, growing up as a STEM kid 05:35 - Creative writing opening the world to storytelling 06:50 - Going to college already knowing about Computer Science 08:40 - Practices and techniques for learning rapidly and staying sharp 10:30 - Understanding the fields of vocabulary and grammar 11:56 - Conscious reading voice, non-conscious reading voice and flow 14:14 - From reading to producing work that people could consume 16:00 - DJ Deconstruction, how Allan put together a primetime radio set on KTCU 17:00 - Networking without inherited connections 19:20 - How networking works for Allan now 22:20 - Networking misunderstood, the traps of the output side 24:00 - Allan’s 70/30 rule for career advancement 25:30 - CISO and CTO parallels 27:30 - What motivated Allan to start his own cyber security podcast 29:30 - For someone entering the Cybersecurity world from a non-technical background Links Connect with Allan on LinkedIn Allan Alford - CISO & CTO - TrustMAPP Check out The Cyber Ranch Podcast! Learn more about Hacker Valley Studio. Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon. Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter. Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter. Learn more about our sponsor AttackIQ and enroll in The AttackIQ Academy!