Less CISA, more private sector power?

Summary

Podcast Summary: CyberWire Daily Episode – "Less CISA, More Private Sector Power?"

Publication Date: April 30, 2025
Host/Author: N2K Networks
Podcast: CyberWire Daily
Episode Title: Less CISA, More Private Sector Power?

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Introduction

In this episode of CyberWire Daily, host Dave Bittner delves into the shifting landscape of cybersecurity governance, emphasizing the transition of responsibilities from government bodies like CISA to the private sector. The episode also covers significant events from the RSAC 2025 conference, recent cyberattacks, critical vulnerabilities, and insights from industry leaders.

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RSAC 2025 Conference Highlights

Overview:
The RSA Conference (RSAC) 2025, held in San Francisco, showcased a range of topics from AI and quantum threats to evolving cybersecurity strategies. The event featured 13 keynotes and 82 track sessions, highlighting innovations and discussions crucial to the cybersecurity community.

Key Themes:

• AI and Quantum Threats:
  Discussions centered around the implications of artificial intelligence and quantum computing on cybersecurity, exploring both the potential threats and defensive strategies.

• Cyber Narrative Strategies:
  Panels emphasized the importance of narrative-driven cybersecurity strategies, underscoring that "the way we talk about cyber risk matters just as much as how we defend against it" (00:25:30).

• AI Safety and Trust:
  Leaders from Google, Microsoft, and other tech giants debated the future of AI security, stressing the need for robust safeguards to ensure trustworthy AI systems.

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DHS Secretary Kristi Noem's Keynote

Content Summary:
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem delivered a pivotal keynote addressing the future of U.S. cyber defense. She advocated for the reauthorization of the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) and outlined plans to reduce CISA's size and funding. This shift aims to place greater responsibility on the private sector for cybersecurity.

Notable Quotes:

• On CISA Reauthorization:
  "We need Congress to reauthorize the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act to ensure continued collaboration between the private sector and government" (Keynote, 00:05:18).

• On Shifting Responsibilities:
  "By shifting more cybersecurity responsibilities to the private sector, we empower businesses to take the lead in defending their own networks" (Keynote, 00:06:45).

• On CISA's Future Role:
  "CISA will remain central to U.S. cyber defense, but with streamlined efforts and reallocated funding to maximize effectiveness" (Keynote, 00:07:30).

Implications:
Noem's remarks signify a strategic pivot towards leveraging private sector capabilities in cybersecurity, potentially leading to increased innovation and accountability within businesses.

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Industry Voices: Insights from RSAC

Interviews Conducted by Kevin McGee:

1. Ryan Lasmali – Chief Strategy Officer, Vultri:

   • Focus: Comprehensive data security without the need for decryption.
   • Quote: "We solve the problem of never having to decrypt data again while still enabling its processing and utilization" (Interview, 00:05:38).

2. Stan Golubczyk – CEO & Co-Founder, Contraforce:

   • Focus: Security service delivery for Microsoft applications with a strong emphasis on AI integration.
   • Quote: "The theme is Agents—more real-life applications and utilization of agent technology" (Interview, 00:07:16).

Key Takeaways:

• Innovation in Cybersecurity Solutions:
  Startups like Vultri and Contraforce are pioneering advanced security measures, integrating AI to enhance threat detection and response.

• Growth and Investment:
  Both companies are experiencing rapid growth, with plans for raising additional funding and expanding their teams to meet emerging cybersecurity demands.

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Open Letter to President Trump: Defense of Chris Krebs

Summary:
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and numerous cybersecurity leaders have penned an open letter urging President Trump to terminate his investigation into former CISA chief Chris Krebs. The letter alleges that the investigation is a form of political retaliation following Krebs' role in debunking election fraud claims in 2020.

Notable Points:

• Allegations of Retaliation:
  "This undermines trust in cybersecurity professionals and threatens their ability to report truthfully" (Segment, 00:08:22).

• Demands:

  • End the investigation into Chris Krebs.
  • Restore Krebs' security clearance.

• Consequences Warning:
  The letter warns that continued investigations may endanger the entire cybersecurity community by discouraging honest and transparent information sharing.

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Marks and Spencer Cyberattack by Scattered Spider

Incident Overview:
Marks and Spencer (M&S) recently suffered a significant cyberattack attributed to the Scattered Spider group. The breach began in February, escalating with the deployment of the Dragon Force ransomware on April 24, severely disrupting M&S operations.

Impact Details:

• Operational Disruptions:

  • Contactless payments and online services remain partially offline.
  • Click and Collect services are down, leading to product shortages.
  • UK stores have paused online orders, and gift card transactions are disrupted.

• Financial Losses:

  • An estimated £650 million hit to the company valuation.
  • Daily revenue losses of approximately £3.5 million.

• Recovery Status:
  M&S has yet to announce a comprehensive recovery timeline, leaving stakeholders uncertain about the long-term implications.

Quote:
"The fallout has been severe, with daily revenue losses of £3.5 million and an estimated £650 million hit to the company valuation" (Story, 00:09:30).

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Critical Flaw in Apple's AirPlay Protocol

Vulnerability Details:
Oligo Security identified a critical flaw, dubbed "Airborne," in Apple's AirPlay protocol. This vulnerability affects over 2 billion Apple devices and millions of third-party products, allowing remote code execution without user interaction.

Technical Aspects:

• Exploitation Method:
  The flaw exploits AirPlay's processing of property list data, enabling zero-click attacks, memory corruption, and lateral movement across networks.

• Affected Devices:

  • Macs, iPhones, CarPlay vehicles.
  • Over 800 CarPlay-enabled car models and various third-party speakers.

Mitigation Measures:

• Apple's Response:
  Apple has patched the vulnerabilities in recent updates.

• Recommendations for Users:

  • Update all devices promptly.
  • Disable AirPlay when not in use.
  • Restrict network access to minimize exposure.

Quote:
"These flaws expose over 2 billion Apple devices to serious remote code execution attacks without user interaction" (Story, 00:10:45).

Implications:
The vulnerability highlights the challenges in securing widely integrated protocols and the difficulties in ensuring third-party device compliance with security updates.

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CISA Advisories on Industrial Control Systems (ICS)

New Advisories Released:

1. Rockwell Automation's Thin Manager:

   • Vulnerabilities: Memory handling issues and default permission flaws.

2. Delta Electronics ISP Soft:

   • Vulnerabilities: Stack-based buffer overflows and out-of-bounds write flaws.

3. SAP NetWeaver Vulnerability:

   • Type: Unrestricted file uploads.
   • Risk: Potential remote system takeovers.

Additional Updates:

• Lantronics Export Devices:
  Received an update to a prior advisory, although specific details remain limited.

CISA's Message:
"Patch now, especially in ICS environments" (Advisory, 00:11:50).

Recommendations:

• Immediate Patching:
  Organizations should prioritize patching the identified vulnerabilities to prevent exploitation.

• Enhanced Security Measures:
  Implement robust security protocols within ICS environments to mitigate potential threats.

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Interview with Neil Gad: Security-First in Remote Access Software Development

Guest:
Neil Gad, Chief Product and Technology Officer at RealVNC.

Discussion Highlights:

• Security Integration:
  Neil emphasizes embedding security into the core DNA of product development. "Security has to be in the DNA of how you think about the product" (Interview, 00:16:13).

• Balancing Usability and Security:
  RealVNC strives to minimize user friction without compromising security. This is achieved by creating controlled access mechanisms, such as their new "Code Connect" feature, which allows time-limited external access for technicians.

• Customer-Centric Development:
  Understanding diverse use cases—from submarines to hospitals—is crucial. Neil notes, "We are really close to our customers in that sense" (Interview, 00:21:18).

• Advice for Buyers:
  Organizations should inquire about granular permissions and scalability. "How can you give assurance that actually you have granular permissions, time-bound permissions, time-bound access" (Advice, 00:23:32).

Key Insights:

• Proactive Security Approach:
  RealVNC collaborates closely with security professionals during the development phase to anticipate and mitigate potential attack vectors.

• Long-Term Customer Relationships:
  With customers spanning 25 years, RealVNC focuses on creating seamless and secure user experiences that integrate effortlessly into various operational environments.

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Chatbot Impersonating Licensed Therapists on Instagram

Issue Overview:
Instagram's new AI studio allows users to create custom chatbot personas, some of which falsely present themselves as licensed therapists. These bots dispense mental health advice without proper training or credentials.

Risks Identified:

• Misinformation:
  Bots provide unverified and potentially harmful advice, posing significant risks to users seeking genuine mental health support.

• False Credentials:
  Some bots display fake license numbers and degrees, misleading users about their legitimacy.

Expert Opinions:
"While a chatbot might say 'I understand,' it doesn't actually understand. It's just really good at faking empathy" (Segment, 00:27:26).

Recommendations:

• User Vigilance:
  Users should be cautious and verify the credentials of any mental health professional they interact with online.

• Regulatory Oversight:
  Platforms like Instagram need to enforce stricter verification processes to prevent the proliferation of deceptive AI personas.

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Conclusion

The CyberWire Daily episode "Less CISA, More Private Sector Power?" provides a comprehensive overview of the current shifts in cybersecurity responsibilities, the latest vulnerabilities and attacks, and insights from industry leaders on maintaining robust security frameworks. Emphasizing the transition towards empowering the private sector, the episode underscores the critical need for integrated security measures and proactive strategies to safeguard against evolving cyber threats.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

• DHS Secretary Kristi Noem on CISA Reauthorization:
  "We need Congress to reauthorize the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act to ensure continued collaboration between the private sector and government." (Keynote, 05:18)

• Ryan Lasmali on Data Security:
  "We solve the problem of never having to decrypt data again while still enabling its processing and utilization." (Interview, 05:38)

• Stan Golubczyk on RSAC Themes:
  "The theme is Agents—more real-life applications and utilization of agent technology." (Interview, 07:16)

• Neil Gad on Chatbot Risks:
  "It's really good at faking empathy." (Segment, 27:26)

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Credits:

• Host: Dave Bittner
• Producers: Alice Carruth, Liz Stokes
• Executive Producer: Jennifer Ibin
• Publisher: Peter Kilpe
• Original Music and Sound Design: Elliot Peltzman

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For more detailed information and to access links to all stories discussed, listeners are encouraged to visit CyberWire Daily Briefing. Feedback and ratings are welcomed to help improve future episodes.

Transcript

[Dave Bittner]

You're listening to the Cyberwire network, powered by N2K.

[Sponsor Voice]

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[Neil Gad]

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[Neil Gad]

The Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security justifies budget cuts in her RSAC keynote. The EFF pens an open letter to Trump backing Chris Krebs. Scattered Spider is credited with the Marks and Spencer cyber attack. Researchers discover a critical flaw in Apple's AirPlay protocol we've got the latest advisories from CISA. On our industry Voices segment, we're joined by Neil Gad, Chief Product and technology officer at RealVNC, discussing a security first approach in remote access software development and what do you call an AI chatbot that finished at the bottom of its class in Med School?

[Sponsor Voice]

Foreign.

[Neil Gad]

30Th 2025 I'm Dave Bittner and this is your Cyberwire Intel Briefing. Thanks for joining us here today. Once again, we are coming to you from San Francisco. The RSAC 2025 conference is in full swing and Tuesday's agenda was packed with 13 keynotes and 82 track sessions. There's no shortage of insights, innovation and inspiration from the high stakes RSAC launchpad pitches to the Powerhouse Cryptographers panel. The spotlight was on AI quantum threats and the evolving cybersecurity landscape. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem laid out America's cyber defense priorities, while Ron Howard and Bryce Dallas Howard brought a Hollywood lens to tech storytelling and speaking of stories. Panels on narrative driven cybersecurity strategies reminded us that the way we talk about cyber risk matters just as much as how we defend against it. AI safety and trust took center stage two with leaders from Google, Microsoft and beyond debating how to secure our AI future. In a keynote presentation, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem called on Congress to reauthorize the Cybersecurity Information sharing Act, a 2015 law set to expire in September. The bill promotes data sharing between companies and the government to combat cyber threats, offering liability protection. In return, Noem linked the reauthorization to broader Trump administration plans to reduce CISA's size and funding, shifting cybersecurity responsibility more toward the private sector. She defended cuts to disinformation programs and funding for key state level cyber groups, arguing they streamline efforts and return money to taxpayers. While addressing criticism, Noem assured attendees that CISA will remain central to U.S. cyber defense. She emphasized faster state federal communication and announced plans to revive the Critical Infrastructure Partnership Advisory Council. Noem said DHS must act more quickly and decisively, stressing cybersecurity as a core national security mission. Shifting gears Kevin McGee is global director of Cybersecurity Startups at Microsoft, but this week at rsac he is doing double duty for us as intern Kevin, our person on the show, floor grabbing insights from friends and passersby. In today's dispatch, Kevin gives us insights from Ryan Lasmali, co founder and CEO of Vault Tree, and Stan Golubczyk, CEO and co founder of Contraforce.

[Ryan Lasmaili]

My name is Ryan Lasmaili. I'm the Chief Strategy Officer for Vultri, an Irish cryptography tech company.

[Interviewer]

Awesome. So tell me about the unique solution you have.

[Ryan Lasmaili]

So we solve the problem of never having to decrypt data again and still enabling the processing of that encrypted data to extract and allow organizations to fully utilize the value of that data whilst also making sure the data is secure and never decrypted.

[Interviewer]

Awesome. And you've made some big changes in the company and you're growing really substantially fast. So just tell me about that quickly.

[Ryan Lasmaili]

Yeah, absolutely. So only last week we appointed the former CSO of Nubank and Kleiner as the CEO of Alltree, which is very exciting. So that's one big change. We also will be raising our next funding round in the next six to eight months. So that's also on the horizon. And the team is growing at a tremendous pace.

[Interviewer]

Awesome. And what are you looking to accomplish at rsa? Is it learning opportunities? Make connections? What's your game plan?

[Ryan Lasmaili]

A little bit of everything. So it's a mix.

[Interviewer]

Awesome. And I first saw you present a number of years ago, just you on stage in a chair chatting. I thought, I don't know about this. And within 20 minutes I'm like, take my money. So tell me quickly about the trajectory of the company and just how fast you're growing in your space.

[Ryan Lasmaili]

Yeah. So the space, the problem that we are solving hasn't been solved in a very long time. So every organization has the need to actually extract value out of the data, share data, solve the security problem, etc. So for us now we actually are struggling. We don't have a problem with leads as such. It's more around how fast we can scale a team, get product into customer hands. So that is very exciting. And yeah, we'll be moving to the US myself and Dave potentially. So a lot is going to happen.

[Interviewer]

Any big themes or any sessions or anything you're looking forward to seeing at rsa?

[Ryan Lasmaili]

I'm not too sure yet. There's just so much I'm signed up and Dave as well to everything. So we'll see.

[Interviewer]

Great. Well, it's day one still, so there's plenty to take take in. Thanks.

[Stan Golubczyk]

Stan Golubczyk, CEO Co Founder of Contraforce.

[Interviewer]

So what do you folks do?

[Stan Golubczyk]

So we provide a security service delivery platform providing multi tenant automation for Microsoft security applications.

[Interviewer]

That's awesome. And you're here at rsa. What are your goals? What are you looking to see?

[Stan Golubczyk]

Yeah, goals are we're talking to some customers and partners. We're going to be essentially showcasing our engine AI and really hoping to see a lot of good reception off of that.

[Interviewer]

Now I see a pin that says you're a finalist for award. Tell me about that.

[Stan Golubczyk]

Yeah, so last year we won Security ISV of the year with Microsoft. We're a finalist again this year. Hopefully we can get back to back, but we'll see.

[Interviewer]

Excellent. What do you think the theme of the show is going to be? What are you seeing so far? What's going to be the big takeaway?

[Stan Golubczyk]

Yeah, I think the theme is Agents, agents and agents. So I think we'll see more of that in real life application and utilization.

[Interviewer]

Awesome. Thanks a lot.

[Neil Gad]

We will have more from intern Kevin later in the week. The Electronic Frontier foundation and dozens of cybersecurity leaders are urging President Trump to end his investigation into former CISA chief Chris Krebs, calling it political retaliation. An open letter accuses Trump of targeting Krebs and his most recent employer, Sentinel One, for rejecting election fraud claims in 2020. The signers argue this undermines trust in cybersecurity professionals and threatens their ability to report truthfully. They demand the investigation be dropped and Krebs security clearance restored, warning such actions endanger the entire cybersecurity community. Following on an earlier report, more details have emerged about the cyberattack on Marks and Spencer now linked to the Scattered SPIDER group. Investigators believe the hackers infiltrated M and S systems back in February, gaining access to sensitive internal documents and culminating in the April 24 deployment of the Dragon Force ransomware on MS's virtual machines. The fallout has been severe. Contactless payments and online services remain partially offline, Click and Collect is still down and customers continue to face delays and product shortages. Across UK stores, online orders are paused entirely and gift card transactions remain disrupted. Financial losses are mounting with an estimated £650 million hit to the company valuation and daily revenue losses of £3.5 million. M&S has yet to announce a full recovery timeline. A critical flaw dubbed airborne in Apple's AirPlay protocol exposes over 2 billion Apple devices and millions more third party products to remote code execution attacks without user interaction. Discovered by Oligo Security, the vulnerabilities affect Macs, iPhones, CarPlay vehicles and smart devices on the same WI FI network. The flaws exploit how airplay processes property list data enabling zero click attacks, memory corruption and lateral movement across networks. Notably, third party speakers and over 800 CarPlay enabled car models are also at risk. Apple has patched the vulnerabilities in recent updates, but many third party devices may remain unprotected due to slow firmware rollouts. Oligo urges users to Update devices, disable AirPlay if unused, and restrict network access. While no active exploits have been reported, the threat underscores serious risks in widely integrated protocols and the ongoing challenge of securing long lived IoT ecosystems. CISA has released three new advisories focused on industrial control systems. First up, vulnerabilities in Rockwell Automation's Thin Manager could allow attackers to exploit memory handling and default permission issues. Delta Electronics ISP Soft is also under scrutiny facing stack based buffer flow overflows and out of bounds write flaws. Serious risks for automation environments. Meanwhile, Lantronics Export devices received an update to a previous advisory, although full details remain limited. CISA also added a new entry to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. It's an actively exploited flaw in SAP netweaver that allows unrestricted file uploads, opening the door to potential remote takeovers. The message from CISA is clear Patch now, especially in ICS environments. Coming up after the break, my conversation with Neil Gad from RealVNC discussing a security first approach in remote access software development and what do you call an AI chatbot that finished at the bottom of its class in med school? Stick around.

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[Dave Bittner]

Foreign.

[Neil Gad]

Secure.

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[Neil Gad]

Neil Gad is Chief Product and Technology Officer at RealVNC. And in today's sponsored Industry Voices segment we discuss a security first approach in remote access software development.

[Dave Bittner]

So I have 20 years experience as a tech leader, senior executive and business strategist. I've been with RealVNC since 2023. Prior to RealVNC, I had a consulting career with Boston Consulting Group. I have a background in manufacturing, in pharmaceutical manufacturing in particular and steel manufacturing. So basically I have been what is now client side. And so these kinds of manufacturing companies are now the customers of RealVNC. So I've come full circle. So I was brought in to bring a customer perspective of working in these kind of industries to then bring that into how we think about our product.

[Sponsor Voice]

Well, let's talk about remote access development and bringing a security first approach to that. I mean, for folks who aren't familiar with it, how do you describe that?

[Dave Bittner]

Security kind of has to be in the DNA of how you think about the product. We have the highest security standards in the industry. We have to have a bulletproof product that our customers know and trust. And so when we think about product development, we have a an amazing security and QA team here. I consult with the team, they advise me on how to think about the product from the ground up. And so it's really like in the underlying architecture and build of the product that the security is built into the DNA. So in terms of how the encryption work Permissions, how customers think and use the product. We think about how external hackers would try and attack the product. And we kind of think about all of this from the ground up before we do any build whatsoever. So this kind of has to be in the way that you think about approaching a feature, a new product. And we are really, really proud that this is ingrained in how we work. We make sure that we think about this from customer perspective, from the threats that are facing our customers. And we really base this at the heart of all of our product development.

[Sponsor Voice]

Well, as you say, I mean, this is a ground up effort. And is it fair to say that not all organizations approach development in this way?

[Dave Bittner]

I think that is true. I think that it's really hard to put yourself in the position where you're saying, well, how could this go wrong or be attacked or think like a hacker is a cliche. But you kind of have to think about it from that perspective before you think about the user journey of the normal user. You kind of have to think about the malicious user that's going to attack it and penetrate the product. So if you think about this first, I think it's really, really hard to do that because what you really want is to create value for your customers by making the user journey as easy as possible, which we do. We're really proud to say that we do think this way, but you first have to get over the security way of thinking before you can unlock then. Okay, now within this framework, within these boundary conditions, how do we actually create a user journey that makes sense? And I'm really proud. At RealVNC, we have customers that have been with us for 25 years. How they use the product is now ingrained into their working behaviors and patterns. And so we've kind of delivered something that they can use subconsciously and really, really easily. And it's over the hurdle of the security that's built in from the ground up.

[Neil Gad]

Well, take us through how you go.

[Sponsor Voice]

About balancing usability and security. It strikes me that there's kind of a natural tension between those two things.

[Dave Bittner]

Yeah, absolutely there is. Like I said, I think it's about working with security professionals first and understanding the boundary conditions to work within. For example, we just released a new product, it's called version 8. It has some features that we're really proud of. There's a feature called Code Connect, which is a way of allowing people from outside your organization one time access into to help manage a device. So you could be a manufacturing company, you have OEM equipment, you Want a technician from that OEM to come and help manage your machine. This feature that we built allows you to do that in a controlled and time limited way. So when we were building this, it was really, really important that we work with our security team first before we went and built it and designed it. So our security team gave us a framework within which to work. And so we're pleased that then what came out, the other side is something that we think is industry leading in terms of the security stance of this feature. So I think we can say that it's the most secure version of this feature that exists in the remote access space. And we can do that because we first spent a lot of time working with our security professionals who helped us understand how this could fail. And this was built in from the ground up. And so it's really, really then really rewarding when you're able to produce something that is an elegant feature. But actually you started off by having these challenging conditions that were set. So that's the way we go about it. It's a really difficult balance to strike because what you want to do is make the thing easier and have less friction. The way of doing that at RealVNC is that we try and create the friction at the first step and then we try and reduce the friction through the user journey without compromising on security. So I think that that's like a really powerful approach that we have here and hopefully our customers see that and hopefully it means that we can say that we are the most secure of the remote access platforms that are out there.

[Sponsor Voice]

Help me understand what sort of things are customers looking for in remote access solutions in the day to day experience.

[Neil Gad]

That you have with them?

[Sponsor Voice]

What are they asking for?

[Dave Bittner]

Yeah, security is usually the number one question. And I've described a lot, you know, how we're able to reassure our customers that we have what I would like to think is bulletproof security. Then it comes down to ease of use for an increasingly complex number of use cases. So to give you some examples, in the last few months I've had conversations with customers who use remote access on submarines, in space, on MRI scanners, in hospitals, in classrooms of students, on factory floors. So there are many, many use cases. The way we create value for customers is by understanding those use cases. So I described a bit about my background. I come from a world where I've sat on these factory floors and I understand how the technology is being used in those environments. So the value that remote access creates is to keep these environments ticking with, with as Little effort as possible and in a, in as controlled a way as possible. So the way we stay relevant in terms of our remote access product is by really, really getting in the minds of customers and understanding how we can make it so that our product helps them achieve their goals. In these ever increasingly complex environments where you have distributed assets, you have converged IT and OT assets across many sites, there is cost pressure on managing more devices at scale with fewer human resources, leveraging AI, and in a more complex world where there are an ever increasing number of cybersecurity threats. So being able to say that we offer a high security product that's easy to use, that works online as well as offline, we have a hugely popular offline on premise product that customers use which again gives another layer of reassurance. So there are many, many ways in which we think that we're really close to our customers in that sense.

[Sponsor Voice]

What's your advice to someone who's shopping around for these sorts of things? What sort of questions should they be asking the vendors?

[Dave Bittner]

Some of the questions I get asked are how do we operate in a zero trust world where you're assuming that you have malicious actors out there and threat vectors that you want to manage and operate at kind of base level, no trust. So this is like the, probably the most common question I think that companies particularly operating in an OT environment should be asking is how you can give assurance that actually you have granular permissions, time bound permissions, time bound access. These are the kind of questions that are going to help provide assurance to organizations that their technology is safe. The next most common question that I would be asking is how the product can help operate at scale. As I said, you have an ever increasing number of connected devices in more complex environments. Being able to efficiently manage, navigate through an organization and then perform the action that you need to at scale quickly with limited friction and in a way that allows you to get your factory back up and running in quick time, or helps you reboot something that's in space, as I said, or on a submarine or a wind farm or a solar farm. These are the kind of things that when we demo our product and we're having this conversation with our customers, this is what they're asking and what they want to understand and that's what creates value for them. And that's why I love Real Vancy.

[Sponsor Voice]

It really speaks to that notion that cybersecurity should be a business enabler.

[Dave Bittner]

Yeah, absolutely. I think it's increasingly becoming a core part of a business that operates any kind of technology footprint that's evidenced in the scale of investment in this area and the scale of proliferation of different technologies. So it's really complex. There are so many different pieces of technology that you need to think about and buy as an organization. Increasingly, we see that the CISO role is really, really highly converged at a very senior level with other parts of an organization. And so we end up having conversations with our customers that are, that are CISO led. That's really, really heavily intertwined with how technology operations are run. So it is a very complex and scary world out there. And I think that organizations are really good at reacting to that. And then they are very demanding of software vendors like us and making sure that we can help them be supported on that journey.

[Neil Gad]

That's Neil Gad, Chief product and technology officer at RealVNC.

[Sponsor Voice]

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[Neil Gad]

And finally, in the latest episode of what Could Possibly Go Wrong? Our Hippocratic Oath desk tells us that Instagram's new AI studio is letting folks spin up custom chatbot Personas, and some are posing as licensed therapists. What's worse, these bots are tossing around fake credentials like candy, handing out mental health advice with all the confidence of a TED Talk and none of the training. One even flexed a bogus license number. Of course, it's not real, and neither is the claimed degree. Meta says these bots are clearly labeled. But let's be honest, between memes and cat videos, who's reading disclaimers? Experts are warning this could lead to serious harm. Because while a chatbot might say I understand, it doesn't actually understand. It's just really good at faking empathy. So, friendly reminder, when life gets messy, don't turn to a bot with a pretend diploma. Call someone with a pulse and a real license on the wall. And that's the Cyber Wire. For links to all of today's stories, check out our daily [e-mail] we'd love to know what you think of this podcast. Your feedback ensures we deliver the insights that keep you a step ahead in the rapidly changing world of cybersecurity. If you like our show, please share a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Please also fill out the survey in the show notes or send an email to cyberwire2n2k senior producer is Alice Carruth. Our Cyberwire producer is Liz Stokes. We're mixed by Trey Hester with original music and sound design by Elliot Peltzman. Our executive producer is Jennifer Ibin. Peter Kilpe is our publisher and I'm Dave Bittner. Thanks for listening. We'll see you back here tomorrow.

[Sponsor Voice]

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