CISO Series Podcast

David Spark, Mike Johnson, and Andy Ellis

  • 45 minutes
    This Security Control Is So Good We Don’t Even Have to Turn It On (LIVE in Clearwater, FL)

    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 Christina Shannon, CIO, KIK Consumer Products. Joining them is Jim Bowie, CISO, Tampa General Hospital.

    In this episode:

    • A journey, not a destination
    • The difference between pressure and stress
    • Fighting commodity deepfakes
    • Getting leadership on the same page

    HUGE thanks to our sponsors, Proofpoint, Cofense, & KnowBe4

    With an integrated suite of cloud-based cybersecurity and compliance solutions, Proofpoint helps organizations around the world stop targeted threats, safeguard their data, and make their users more resilient against cyber attacks. Discover cutting-edge security insights and industry trends from leading experts at Proofpoint Power Series—a monthly virtual event designed to empower the security community. Learn more at proofpoint.com

    Powered by 35 million trained employee reporters, the exclusive Cofense® PhishMe® Email Security Awareness Training with Risk Validation and Phishing Threat Detection and Response Platforms combine robust training with advanced tools for phishing identification and remediation. Together, our solutions empower organizations to identify, combat, and eliminate phishing threats in real-time. Learn more at cofense.com

    KnowBe4's PhishER Plus is a lightweight SOAR platform that streamlines threat response for high-volume, potentially malicious emails reported by users. It automatically prioritizes messages, helping InfoSec and Security Operations teams quickly address the most critical threats, reducing inbox clutter and enhancing overall security efficiency. Learn more at knowbe4.com

    1 April 2025, 10:00 am
  • 42 minutes 1 second
    The Security Incident Has Been Upgraded From “Ouch” to “Boiiiing” (LIVE in Orlando, FL)

    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 Trina Ford, CISO, iHeartMedia. Joining us is our sponsored guest Rob Allen, chief product officer, ThreatLocker.

    This episode was recorded in front of a live audience at Zero Trust World in Orlando, Florida.

    In this episode:

    • Severity versus impact
    • Breaking the anti-pattern
    • Take the first step to zero trust
    • What are your demands?

    ThreatLocker® is a Zero Trust endpoint protection platform that provides enterprise-level cybersecurity to organizations globally. With easy onboarding, management, and 24/7/365 support, ThreatLocker makes default deny a reality for businesses. Only allow what you need in your environment and block everything else, including ransomware!

    25 March 2025, 10:00 am
  • 40 minutes 56 seconds
    How to Best Maintain a Healthy Work-Work Balance in Cybersecurity

    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, YL Ventures. Joining us is Edward Contreras, senior evp and CISO, Frost Bank

    In this episode:

    • A gradual language shift
    • Don’t reflexively rise and grind
    • Lean into focus
    • Gauging the unmeasurable 

    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.

    18 March 2025, 10:00 am
  • 34 minutes 16 seconds
    Our CISO Might Be Virtual, But the Lack of Respect Is Genuine

    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 Mike Wilkes, former CISO, Major League Soccer.

    In this episode:

    • Are we misusing vCISOs?
    • Cybersecurity is out to sea
    • Planning for your exit
    • Building up your quantum reflexes

    Thanks to our podcast sponsor, Tines

    Build, run, and monitor your most important workflows with Tines. Tines' smart, secure workflow platform empowers your whole team regardless of their coding abilities, environment complexities, or tech stack. From low code, no code to natural language, anyone can get up and running in minutes – not days or weeks. Learn more at https://tines.com/cisoseries

    11 March 2025, 10:00 am
  • 39 minutes 9 seconds
    All Cybersecurity Problems Are Easy to Fix… With Unlimited Time and Budget
    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 Adam Holland, former CISO, the Wendy’s Company, now CISO of Ascension Healthcare.   In this episode:
    • The long road to influence
    • The effort to build a bridge
    • Living within limits
    • Motivation for security awareness
     Thanks to our podcast sponsor, Vanta! Say goodbye to spreadsheets and screenshots. Vanta automates evidence collection needed for audits with over  350 integrations—giving you continuous visibility into your compliance status. And with cross-mapped controls across over 35 frameworks, you’ll streamline compliance— and never duplicate your efforts.
    4 March 2025, 11:00 am
  • 37 minutes 11 seconds
    Every Failed Startup Starts as a Dream for a Single Pane of Glass

    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 Shaun Marion, vp, CSO, Xcel Energy.

    In this episode:

    • Setting policy
    • The hard thing about soft skills
    • Never let a good crisis go to waste
    • Avoiding the tarpit

     Thanks to our podcast sponsor, Noma Security!

    Secure your entire Data & AI Lifecycle—from development to production and classic data engineering to GenAI. Noma’s full-lifecycle platform delivers seamless protection against risks like misconfigured data pipelines, malicious models, and adversarial AI attacks, empowering AppSec teams with complete visibility, security, and compliance—without disrupting data and AI teams’ workflows.

    25 February 2025, 11:00 am
  • 36 minutes 47 seconds
    Fix it? Let’s Just Get Rid of It.

    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, Danny Jenkins, CEO, ThreatLocker.

    In this episode:

    • A zero-day upgrade
    • Don’t let a pentest go bad
    • Improving user training
    • Cybersecurity is made for people

    Thanks to our podcast 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.

    18 February 2025, 11:00 am
  • 37 minutes 33 seconds
    Zero Trust Purple Team DevSecOps Mesh: A CASB Journey Through the Identity Fabric

    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 Steve Zalewski. Joining us is our sponsored guest, Matt Muller, field CISO, Tines.

    In this episode:

    • Seeking the early AI adopters
    • Taking the SOC back to basics
    • Changing our automation expectations
    • Communicate risk

    Thanks to our podcast sponsor, Tines!

    Build, run, and monitor your most important workflows with Tines. Tines' smart, secure workflow platform empowers your whole team regardless of their coding abilities, environment complexities, or tech stack. From low code, no code to natural language, anyone can get up and running in minutes – not days or weeks. Learn more at Tines.com.

    11 February 2025, 11:00 am
  • 37 minutes 9 seconds
    Our Developers’ New Motto is “LLM Take the Wheel”

    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 Deneen DeFiore, Vice President & Chief Information Security Officer, United Airlines.

    In this episode:

    • Minding the gap
    • Copilot overreliance
    • Opening up the field
    • Navigating the SMB cyber insurance conundrum

    Thanks to our podcast sponsor, Vanta!

    Say goodbye to spreadsheets and screenshots 

    Vanta automates evidence collection needed for audits with over  350 integrations—giving you continuous visibility into your compliance status. And with cross-mapped controls across over 35 frameworks, you’ll streamline compliance— and never duplicate your efforts.

    4 February 2025, 11:00 am
  • 42 minutes 18 seconds
    As Long as We Keep Moving the Goalposts, We Have a Great Security Culture (LIVE in Dallas, TX)

    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 Rinki Sethi, vp and CISO, BILL. Joining us is our sponsored guest, Lamont Orange, CISO, Cyera.

    This episode was recorded in front of a live audience at Cyera’s first DataSec conference (November 2024) in Dallas. Thanks to Adam Holland, CISO, Wendy's, Farray Rahman of Vibrant Emotional Health and 988 Lifeline, and Biji John of USAA for our questions in the episode.

    In this episode:

    • Shifting from traditional recovery
    • Do you know where your data is?
    • The science of tradeoffs
    • How do you measure security culture?

    Thanks to our podcast sponsor, Cyera!

    Cyera’s data security platform discovers your data attack surface, protects sensitive data, governs data access, monitors critical data events, and quickly responds to data risks. Cyera’s agentless design allows us to deploy within minutes across any environment and provide a 95% precision rate through our AI-powered classification engine. Learn more at Cyera.io

    28 January 2025, 11:00 am
  • 37 minutes 51 seconds
    4th Party Data Breach? We Can Barely Catch the 1st Party Ones!

    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 Mike Johnson, CISO, Rivian. Joining us is George Finney, CISO, The University of Texas System and author of Project Zero Trust.

    In this episode:

    • Aligning on privacy
    • Bringing Zero Trust to OT
    • Restores and resilience
    • Focus on what you can control

    Thanks to our podcast sponsor, Vanta!

    Say goodbye to spreadsheets and screenshots. Vanta automates evidence collection needed for audits with over  350 integrations—giving you continuous visibility into your compliance status. And with cross-mapped controls across over 35 frameworks, you’ll streamline compliance— and never duplicate your efforts.

    21 January 2025, 11:00 am
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