"This Is Fine" with Hunter Strategy

Hunter Strategy
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Technology
  • Updated Weekly

Welcome to "This Is Fine" with Hunter Strategy, because who doesn't need another podcast, right? But hold on, this isn't your typical corporate spiel. "This Is Fine" dives deep into topics like Cloud security and agile methods, but with a twist of humor, sarcasm, and a sprinkle of dad jokes. Instead of boring PDFs, we bring lively discussions to life, offering a peek behind the curtain at our quirky team. Join us for a roller coaster ride through tech talk and more. Trust us, it's going to be fine... probably!

  1. 1d ago

    Applied Cyber Threat Intelligence

    Ask 5 people to define threat intelligence and you'll get 5 different answers, and that's exactly where this episode starts. Will Elchert (Senior CTI Analyst, Hunter Strategy) and Jake Williams (VP of R&D, Hunter Strategy) join host Matt Triner alongside two clients living this from the buyer's side: Keith McCartney, SVP of Security and IT at DNA Nexus, and Billy Martin, CTSO at Vigor. Together, they break down what separates a threat intel program that actually drives decisions from one that's just, as Jake puts it, "cyber story time with the CTI team." The conversation covers where AI genuinely helps in CTI workflows and where it falls flat, how red and blue teams each get value out of the same intelligence, and what metrics actually prove a security program's worth to leadership. Episode Chapters: 00:00 Introduction to Cyber Threat Intelligence 02:51 Defining Threat Intelligence 05:41 Stakeholder Engagement in Cybersecurity 08:34 Risk Management and Cyber Threat Intelligence 11:36 Industry-Specific Approaches to Threat Intelligence 14:25 The Importance of Context in Threat Intelligence 17:07 Integrating Cybersecurity Functions 19:51 Actionability of Threat Intelligence 25:24 The Evolution of Cyber Threat Intelligence 28:58 AI's Role in Cybersecurity 32:19 Data Analysis and AI Integration 37:14 Challenges and Opportunities with AI 41:27 Human Element in Cyber Threat Intelligence 49:57 Red Team vs Blue Team Dynamics 52:28 Red Team vs Blue Team: Who Leverages CTI Better? 55:02 Funding and Capability Development in Cybersecurity 58:11 The Importance of Communication and Collaboration 01:01:14 Metrics for Measuring Threat Intelligence Effectiveness 01:09:45 Building a Cybersecurity Program from Scratch

  2. Sep 3

    Threat Modeling Techniques in Defense Cybersecurity

    Threat modeling is one of cybersecurity's most valuable practices, and one of the most skipped. Xander Keele (Director of Solution Architecture) and Greg Vanore (Director of Software Engineering) join host Matt Triner to break down frameworks like STRIDE and PASTA, why developers push back on it, and how to get buy-in without falling into pure theory. They also dig into how AI is changing the pace of both attacks and defenses. Episode Chapters: 00:00 Introduction to Threat Modeling in Cybersecurity 02:12 Defining Threat Modeling and Its Overlooked Nature 07:13 The Role of Risk Assessment in Threat Modeling 12:09 Social Skills in Threat Modeling and Development 22:06 Higher-Level Threat Modeling and Industry Context 24:45 Real-World Applications of Threat Modeling Techniques 31:49 Enhancing Threat Models with Market Insights 34:10 The Role of Market Share in Risk Assessment 36:36 Contractual Implications of Threat Modeling 41:34 Integrating Threat Modeling into Development Culture 52:02 Adapting Threat Modeling for Emerging Technologies

  3. Aug 27

    Opensource Software Security in the DoD

    Open source software promises cost savings and faster innovation, but the Department of Defense's approach to it is messier than most people realize. Host Matt Triner sits down with Hunter Strategy's Greg Vanore (Director of Software Engineering) and Nate Kingsley (CIO) to unpack the real risks: contributor license agreements that can sign away government-funded code, foreign ownership questions that don't always get consistent answers, and a supply chain that's only as trustworthy as its weakest link. They also dig into what's actually fixing the problem, from CI/CD pipelines to continuous ATO. This one gets spicy.Episode Chapters: 00:00 Introduction and Overview 01:59 Defining Open Source Software 03:49 Contributor License Agreements and Licensing Issues 06:08 The Challenges of Open Source Software in the DoD 08:39 The Need for Clear Policies 11:25 The Financial Challenges of Open Source Software 17:19 The Risk of Support and Lack of Governance 20:12 The Permissiveness of Open Source Software in the DoD 24:02 Supply Chain Risk and Software Sourcing 30:11 Improving the Use of Open Source Software 35:16 The Role of S-BOMs and Information Sharing 37:49 Conclusion and Call to Action

  4. Aug 20

    The Most Useless NPM Repos

    TIL: npm has a package called "none." It does exactly what it sounds like: nothing. It still gets 300 downloads a week. There's also "is-even," which calls out to an AI model to check whether a number is even, with about 80% accuracy, because apparently modulo operators were too much work. Matt Triner sits down with Matt D'vertola, Greg Vanore, and Jeff Segal to laugh at npm's most absurd packages and then get serious about what they expose: arbitrary code execution on install, a transitive dependency system that snowballs trust across thousands of hands, and why typosquatting a familiar package name still works embarrassingly well. The jokes are the hook. The supply chain risk is the point. Episode Chapters: 00:00 Introduction to NPM and Its Impact 06:45 The Dark Side of NPM: Security Risks 11:49 Micro Packages: A Double-Edged Sword 14:45 Cultural Reflections on Node.js and NPM 19:41 The Evolution of UI and UX Development 24:24 Cultural Divide in Application Development 28:47 The Rise of JavaScript and Node.js 33:47 The Importance of Software Engineering Fundamentals 35:30 Best Practices for NPM Security

  5. Aug 13

    Team Death Spiral

    Your product is getting worse, not better, and everyone's too busy bailing water to notice the boat isn't even the problem. Hunter Strategy's Greg Vanore, Scott Hiland, and Jeff Segal break down the Team Death Spiral: the slow, often invisible slide from a healthy team into one buried in tech debt, low morale, and busted trust. They get into why "tech debt" is the wrong word to bring into a leadership conversation, what it actually means when a team isn't allowed to lead, and why more money or headcount rarely saves a struggling team. Spoiler: the fix usually has nothing to do with the budget.Episode Chapters: 00:00 Understanding the Team Death Spiral 03:30 Identifying Warning Signs 07:18 The Role of Leadership in Preventing the Spiral 13:36 Communication and Team Dynamics 18:03 Tech Debt: A Deeper Dive 21:50 The Necessity of Automation in Agile Development 22:49 Challenges in Team Automation and Ownership 25:14 Leadership's Role in Preventing Team Death Spirals 27:11 Effective Communication and Empathy in Leadership 29:31 Balancing Fun and Seriousness in Team Dynamics 30:11 Empathy Towards Non-Human Factors 34:54 Navigating Difficult Conversations with Stakeholders 37:18 Understanding Profitability and Team Efficiency 39:09 The Importance of Maintenance Over Replacement 48:02 Agency and Resource Allocation in High-Performing Teams 54:48 The Impact of Resources on Team Performance

    Team Death Spiral

  6. Aug 6

    Security Clearance Processes

    Security clearances are confusing enough on their own - facility clearances, personnel clearances, safeguarding, network access - and the rules rarely work the way people assume. In this episode, Matt Triner talks with Sean Blackman, co-founder and CEO of Nooks, about the real bottlenecks holding companies back from classified work, including the "chicken and egg" problem of needing a clearance to win a contract and a contract to justify a clearance. They dig into why building your own SCIF can take two years before a network is even touched, and why "go get a prime to sponsor you" is too often the only advice small businesses get. Sean explains what Nooks is actually solving: shared, subscription-based access to secure facilities around the country, and why he sees this as a national scaling problem, not just a paperwork one. If you're a founder, contractor, or engineer weighing whether classified work is worth pursuing, this conversation lays out what to expect and where to start. Episode Chapters: 00:00 Introduction and Overview 05:01 Introducing Nooks: Classified Infrastructure as a Service 08:01 The Challenges of Scaling in the Classified Marketplace 11:57 The Role of Nooks in Solving the Access Problem 19:56 Solving the Dual Use Problem: Defense and Intelligence 22:52 The Timeframe for Security Clearances and Network Access 28:42 The Role of Commercial Solutions for Classified 33:57 Challenges and Opportunities in the Classified Marketplace 39:52 Advice for Companies Entering the Classified Space

    Security Clearance Processes

  7. Jul 30

    How to Determine Materiality in a DFIR Situation

    What actually makes a cybersecurity incident "material" - and who gets to decide? In this episode of This Is Fine, host Matt Triner sits down with Lee Kim (IANS Faculty and Practicing Law Institute member) and Jake Williams (VP of R&D, Hunter Strategy) to break down materiality in digital forensics and incident response. They cover the legal definition of materiality, the SEC's share-price test from TSC Industries v. Northway, and why the call should sit with counsel rather than the forensics firm. The conversation also digs into practical guardrails: documenting decisions in real time to avoid hindsight bias, building scenario-based frameworks before an incident hits, and where large language models do (and very much don't) belong in forensic work. A grounded, occasionally profane look at a topic every incident responder eventually has to wrestle with. Episode Chapters:  00:00 Introduction to Digital Forensics and Materiality 04:12 Understanding Materiality 10:45 Regulatory Frameworks and Materiality 15:32 Establishing Materiality in Incident Response 23:20 Understanding Materiality in Forensics 28:13 The Role of Stakeholders in Defining Materiality 35:37 The Future of Materiality and Regulatory Changes 41:09 AI's Role in Forensics and Materiality

    How to Determine Materiality in a DFIR Situation

  8. Jul 23

    NAICS Abuse

    Most companies exploit the NAICS system to unfairly skew government competition and few realize how deep the abuse runs. In this eye-opening episode, cybersecurity and government contracting experts Kevin Belanga, Chief Growth Officer at Hunter Strategy, and John Czaika, VP, Strategic Initiatives at Hunter Strategy, unpack how misclassifying NAICS codes can block small businesses, inflate costs, and even land shell companies lucrative contracts meant for true small firms. Discover how industry insiders manipulate NAICS classification for competitive advantage, sometimes unintentionally and often intentionally, and learn practical strategies to spot, challenge, and prevent these abuses. We also break down how government agencies, industry players, and watchdogs can work together to ensure fair play, safeguard small business opportunities, and uphold the integrity of federal procurement. Whether you’re a small business aiming to protect its opportunities or a government professional committed to transparency, this episode reveals the behind-the-scenes tactics that shape the federal marketplace and how to fight back.Episode Chapters: 00:00 Understanding NAICS Codes 02:38 Implications of NAICS on Government Contracts 09:24 NAICS Abuse and Its Consequences 15:59 Challenges in NAICS Classification 22:05 Understanding NAICS Codes in Contracting 27:47 The Role of Contracting Officers 33:26 Challenges in Contracting Oversight 39:12 Balancing Competition and Accountability 43:46 Navigating Acquisition Strategies

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About

Welcome to "This Is Fine" with Hunter Strategy, because who doesn't need another podcast, right? But hold on, this isn't your typical corporate spiel. "This Is Fine" dives deep into topics like Cloud security and agile methods, but with a twist of humor, sarcasm, and a sprinkle of dad jokes. Instead of boring PDFs, we bring lively discussions to life, offering a peek behind the curtain at our quirky team. Join us for a roller coaster ride through tech talk and more. Trust us, it's going to be fine... probably!

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