Cyber Confessions with Cybersecurity Girl

Why Your Phone is NEVER Truly Off (ft. Stuart McClure)

Think your private life is safe because your phone is powered down? Stuart McClure says that advice is 15 years out of date. In this episode of Cyber Confessions, host Caitlin Sarian (Cybersecurity Girl) sits down with the man who wrote the "Bible" of hacking, Stuart McClure. As the former Global CTO of McAfee and founder of Cylance, Stuart reveals the chilling reality of modern "Advanced Power Management" where antennas, receivers, and location services stay active even when you think the device is off. From hacking live medical devices on a keynote stage to building "Digital Delegates" that replicate the human psyche, Stuart pulls back the curtain on the future of the AI economy and the death of traditional digital privacy. Inside this Episode: * * The "Power Off" Myth: Why modern internal batteries and "Advanced Power Management" mean your phone’s antennas and location services simply cannot be shut off. * The RSA Keynote Hack: Stuart’s "drop the mic" moment, where he used an antenna to pick up insulin pump signals from a live audience. * * Beyond the Phone: How the same vulnerabilities allowed his team to take over implantable cardiac defibrillators and neural brain stimulators. * The Ring Privacy System: How Stuart built a five-ring enclave system to categorize and protect your most private thoughts from surveillance * Wi-Fi Home Defense: Why you must move past "Admin/Admin" passwords and how to set up notifications for new MAC addresses on your network. Guest Bio: Stuart McClure is a serial entrepreneur and the founding author of the #1 hacking book, Hacking Exposed. He previously served as the Global CTO for McAfee/Intel and is currently the CEO of Qwiet AI and Wethos AI. Follow us for more Cyber Confessions!

Microsoft’s Largest Breach: 1,000 Spies vs. 500 Experts (ft. Eric Doerr)

What happens when 1,000 nation-state spies spend a year hiding inside the world's most secure networks? In this episode of Cyber Confessions, Caitlin Sarian (Cybersecurity Girl) sits down with Eric Doerr, the man who led Microsoft’s response to the infamous SolarWinds attack. Eric pulls back the curtain on the "2-to-1" battle to save global infrastructure, the 25-day sprint that ruined Christmas for 500 experts, and the extreme paranoia required to manage a crisis where you can't even trust your own boss. Inside this Episode: * The 2-to-1 Battle: Why it took 500 Microsoft experts to fight off 1,000 specialized attackers. * The Identity Test: Why Eric made Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella verify his identity before joining the crisis call. * The 18,000-Target Trap: How a single software update compromised 9 federal agencies * The Golden Rules: The personal security habits a top-tier CPO actually uses to stay safe. Guest Bio:Eric Doerr is the Chief Product Officer at Tenable. He previously led security for Google Cloud and spent 20 years at Microsoft, where he ran the Microsoft Security Response Center (MSRC) Follow us for more Cyber Confessions!

"Got Caught by a 3-Letter Agency at 13. Now I’m a Space Force Engineer"(ft. Joseph Cheung)

At 13 years old, Joseph Cheung found an "open door" in an information system he shouldn't have been in. Nine months later, "big scary people" from a three-letter agency came knocking. Today, he is a Chief Engineer for the U.S. Space Force, protecting the satellite technology that keeps our GPS, global clocks, and credit card processing running In this episode of Cyber Confessions, Caitlin Sarian sits down with Joseph to discuss his childhood curiosity, the reality of defending assets in orbit, and why the future of AI legislation might be "soft touch" or "hard touch" depending on where you live. In this episode: * The 13-Year-Old "Hacker": How a childhood curiosity for "walking through open doors" led to a run-in with a three-letter agency. * Why Space Matters to You: Why the Space Force mission is the reason your GPS, Apple Pay, and credit cards actually work. * The "Ethical AI" Myth: Why "ethical" AI is impossible to define when everyone’s morals are different. * The Career Accelerator: Why $5,000 certifications are a trap and how the Cyber Career Club focuses on the power of networking. * The 80% Solution: Why AI won't replace your job, but will turn you into a "Prompt Engineer About the Guest: Joseph Cheung is a Chief Engineer for the U.S. Space Force. With a background that includes the Air Force Academy and influencing state-level privacy and AI legislation, he now works at the intersection of national security and the final frontier.Follow us for more Cyber Confessions!

How a Pro Hacker Uses Your Social Media to 'Sneak In' Legally (ft. Andrea Schaumann-Phillips)

In this episode of Cyber Confessions, host Caitlin Sarian (Cybersecurity Girl) sits down with Andrea Schaumann-Phillips, a DEF CON Black Badge social engineering expert. Andrea reveals how she "sneaks into things " (legally ofc!) by using human psychology to bypass the most secure technical systems. We also dive into why your "harmless" social media posts are actually a roadmap for hackers to build a profile on you and breach your workplace Inside this Episode: * The Social Media Roadmap: How "Day in the Life" videos accidentally leak office layouts and security badge designs. * The #1 Vulnerability: Why psychology is the biggest security gap facing every individual and company today. * The 11-Hour Grind: What it’s really like inside the high-stakes DEF CON "vishing booth" hacking companies live on stage. * Corporate "Slang" as a Weapon: How hackers use internal jargon to sound like an insider in seconds. * The "Personal MFA" Hack: A simple family trick to verify callers and protect yourself from AI voice-cloning scams About the Guest:Andrea is the Director of Partnerships & Programs at Fortress Information Security and a DEF CON Black Badge winner in Social Engineering. She is a leading expert in OSINT and the "human element" of cybersecurity, helping global organizations secure their most vulnerable surface: their people.Follow us for more Cyber Confessions!

Sextortion & The Ransomware War (ft. Keelin Conant)

Is your "cyber hygiene" putting you at risk without you even knowing it? In this episode of Cyber Confessions, host Caitlin Sarian (Cybersecurity Girl) sits down with Keelin Conant, Senior Solutions Advisor at Alvaka and host of the CyberSoul podcast, to expose the surprising ways our daily habits leave us vulnerable. From the "false sense of security" we feel while working at 30,000 feet to the heartbreaking rise of digital blackmail, we move beyond the code to discuss why cybersecurity is fundamentally a human issue. Keelin exposes the "Patch and Pray" reality of modern tech, and Caitlin and Keelin explain why the industry needs more than just coders; it needs psychologists, lawyers, and creative thinkers to fight back against global threat actors Inside this Episode: * The Silent Crisis of Sextortion: Why teenagers and young men are being targeted in "terrible webs" of blackmail and why no one is talking about it. * The Ransomware Debate: A deep dive into why paying the ransom is a "capitalism issue" that fuels the criminal economy. * The "Patch and Pray" Reality: Why companies fear software updates * Airplane Privacy Fails: Why we feel "insulated" on planes and the risk of displaying sensitive financials in public spaces. * Public Wi-Fi & "The Chase Bank Story": The appalling moment Caitlin witnessed a traveler logging into their bank account on an open Wi-Fi network at an airport. Guest Bio: Keelin Conant is a Senior Solutions Advisor at Alvaka and the visionary behind CyberSoul. She is a catalyst for transformation, encouraging audiences to embrace vulnerability, honor their authentic selves, and build true human connection in an increasingly tech-driven world. Follow us for more Cyber Confessions!