CISO Series Podcast

David Spark, Mike Johnson, and Andy Ellis
  • 4.8 (185)
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
CISO Series Podcast

Discussions, tips, and debates from security practitioners and vendors on how to work better together to improve security for themselves and everyone else.

  1. We Can Either Build Resilience or Just Always Be Perfect

    1H AGO

    We Can Either Build Resilience or Just Always Be Perfect

    All links and images can be found on CISO Series. This week’s episode is hosted by me, David Spark, producer of CISO Series and Edward Contreras, senior evp and CISO, Frost Bank. Joining us is Ryan Bachman, executive vice president and CISO, GM Financial. In this episode Identity consolidation versus simplification Entry-level pathways into cybersecurity Evolution of the CISO role toward business resilience Applying simplification principles to cybersecurity complexity Huge thanks to our sponsor, Doppel Doppel is the first social engineering defense platform built to dismantle deception at the source. It uses AI and infrastructure correlation to detect, link, and disrupt impersonation campaigns before they spread - protecting brands, executives, and employees while turning every threat into action that strengthens defenses across a shared intelligence network.

    38 min
  2. We Checked the “Yes” Box for Cybersecurity. What Else Do We Have to Do?

    JUN 17

    We Checked the “Yes” Box for Cybersecurity. What Else Do We Have to Do?

    All links and images can be found on CISO Series. This week’s episode is hosted by me, David Spark (@dspark), producer of CISO Series and Andy Ellis (@csoandy), partner, YL Ventures. Joining us is Alex Hall, CISO, Gensler. In this episode: Evaluating secure messaging beyond the app Reframing compliance as a business enabler Incremental security investment vs. crisis response Why culture, not punishment, drives secure behavior Huge thanks to our sponsor, Vanta Automate, centralize, & scale your GRC program with Vanta Vanta’s Trust Management Platform automates key areas of your GRC program—including compliance, internal and third-party risk, and customer trust—and streamlines the way you gather and manage information. And the impact is real: A recent IDC analysis found that compliance teams using Vanta are 129% more productive. Get started at Vanta.com/ciso.

    41 min
  3. Aside From Text, Images, and Videos, GenAI Can’t Fool Me (Live in Boston)

    JUN 10

    Aside From Text, Images, and Videos, GenAI Can’t Fool Me (Live in Boston)

    All links and images can be found on CISO Series. This week’s episode is hosted by me, David Spark, producer of CISO Series and Andy Ellis, partner, YL Ventures. Joining us is our sponsored guest, Sam Curry, global vp, CISO at Zscaler. This episode was recorded at a Zscaler event in Boston, MA. In this episode: Guardrails for decision making under fatigue Preparing for quantum threats Strategic use of generative AI Reassessing outdated knowledge Huge thanks to our sponsor, Zscaler Zscaler is a cloud-based cybersecurity company that provides secure internet access and private application access. Its platform replaces traditional network security by delivering Zero Trust architecture, protecting users, data, and applications regardless of location. Zscaler’s scalable services help organizations modernize IT and reduce risk with seamless, cloud-native security solutions.

    47 min

  4. JUN 3

    AI Isn’t Going to Take Your Job, It’s Going to Eliminate It! (LIVE at BSidesSF)

    All images and links can be found on CISO Series. This week’s episode is hosted by me, David Spark (@dspark), producer of CISO Series and Andy Ellis (@csoandy), partner, YL Ventures. Joining us is Alexandra Landegger, global head of cyber strategy & transformation, RTX. In this episode: A cybersecurity fast-track? When Ambition Becomes a Liability Giving the CVE Program the Credit It Deserves Elevating human cyber talent with AI Huge thanks to our sponsors, Nudge Security, SecurityScorecard, and Vanta Take control of SaaS security and AI governance with Nudge Security. Start a free trial today and get a full inventory of all SaaS and GenAI accounts in minutes along with risk insights and automation to help you quickly improve your security posture. Get started here: nudgesecurity.com/cisoseries   Third-party risk doesn’t stop at monitoring. SecurityScorecard delivers real-time detection and response across your supply chain—helping you fix vulnerabilities before they become breaches. Empower your team with expert-driven remediation, continuous vendor oversight, and board-ready insights that drive results.   Automate, centralize, & scale your GRC program with Vanta Vanta’s Trust Management Platform automates key areas of your GRC program—including compliance, internal and third-party risk, and customer trust—and streamlines the way you gather and manage information. And the impact is real: A recent IDC analysis found that compliance teams using Vanta are 129% more productive. Get started at Vanta.com/ciso.

    45 min
  5. I Can’t Choose. I Love All My Assets Equally.

    MAY 27

    I Can’t Choose. I Love All My Assets Equally.

    All links and images can be found on CISO Series. This week’s episode is hosted by me, David Spark (@dspark), producer of CISO Series and Andy Ellis (@csoandy), partner, YL Ventures. Joining us is Tim Jacobs, vp, CISO, Commonwealth Care Alliance. In this episode: Starting from zero Prepare for decisive decisions Working back from unacceptable Discovering inefficiencies  A huge thanks to our sponsor, ThreatLocker ThreatLocker® is a global leader in Zero Trust endpoint security, offering cybersecurity controls to protect businesses from zero-day attacks and ransomware. ThreatLocker operates with a default deny approach to reduce the attack surface and mitigate potential cyber vulnerabilities. To learn more and start your free trial, visit ThreatLocker.com.

    34 min
  6. Why Learn Security Fundamentals When We Could Just Chase Our Tails?

    MAY 20

    Why Learn Security Fundamentals When We Could Just Chase Our Tails?

    All links and images for this episode can be found on CISO Series. I host this week’s episode, David Spark (@dspark), producer of CISO Series and Jesse Whaley, CISO, Amtrak. Joining them is their guest Vaughn Hazen, CISO, CN. In this episode: The classics endure The rules of the rail "Prove It. With data." It's all just software A huge thanks to our sponsor, Doppel Doppel is the first social engineering defense platform built to dismantle deception at the source. It uses AI and infrastructure correlation to detect, link, and disrupt impersonation campaigns before they spread - protecting brands, executives, and employees while turning every threat into action that strengthens defenses across a shared intelligence network. Learn more at https://www.doppel.com/platform

    34 min
  7. I’m Not Looking Down at You, I’m Looking Down at What You’re Doing

    MAY 13

    I’m Not Looking Down at You, I’m Looking Down at What You’re Doing

    All links and images for this episode can be found on CISO Series. This week’s episode is hosted by me, David Spark (@dspark), producer of CISO Series and Andy Ellis (@csoandy), partner, YL Ventures. Joining us is our sponsored guest, Saket Modi, co-founder and CEO, SAFE Security. In this episode: Elevating AI to table stakes Security for the real world Using dynamic models for TPRM The agentic AI augmentation  Huge thanks to our sponsor, SAFE Security SAFE (#1 platform to unify the management of all cyber risks) has reinvented cyber risk management with Agentic AI. We help CISOs, TPRM, and GRC leaders become strategic business partners by automating the understanding, prioritization and management of cyber risk—accelerating AI adoption and digital transformation.

    42 min

  8. MAY 6

    They’re Not AI Mistakes, They’re Happy Little Incidents

    All links and images for this episode can be found on CISO Series. This week’s episode is hosted by me, David Spark, producer of CISO Series, and Andy Ellis, partner of YL Ventures. Their sponsored guest is Jadee Hanson, CISO of Vanta. In this episode: Find a partner to work with Fixing the root of burnout The limitations of human vigilance Balancing openness and control Thanks to our sponsor, Vanta. Automate, centralize, & scale your GRC program with Vanta Vanta’s Trust Management Platform automates key areas of your GRC program—including compliance, internal and third-party risk, and customer trust—and streamlines the way you gather and manage information. And the impact is real: A recent IDC analysis found that compliance teams using Vanta are 129% more productive. Get started at Vanta.com/ciso.

    46 min
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4.8
out of 5
185 Ratings

About

Discussions, tips, and debates from security practitioners and vendors on how to work better together to improve security for themselves and everyone else.

Information

  • Creator
    David Spark, Mike Johnson, and Andy Ellis
  • Years Active
    2018 - 2025
  • Episodes
    361
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2018-2025 CISO Series
  • Show Website
    CISO Series Podcast

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