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Safety Talk #66

Offensive and Defensive Cybersecurity

2023/11/22

Summary

The video discussed cyber security strategies that both individuals and businesses can take to protect themselves from increasingly common and damaging cyber attacks. It featured an interview with Anant Shrivastava, the founder of Siphonoid Research, who spoke about the offensive and defensive cyber security techniques and tools that are presented at the annual nCon cyber security conference in India. He emphasized the importance of understanding both attack methods as well as defense strategies in order to adequately assess risks and strengthen security. The conference aims to educate people at all levels, from technicians to executives, on the latest cyber threats and solutions through various tracks, workshops, and presentations.

nCon covers a wide range of technical topics related to web applications, payment systems, biometric security, and more. It also provides opportunities to learn from and connect with security researchers, tool developers, and companies. Anant highlighted how past attendees have gone on to establish their own successful security businesses after gaining knowledge and inspiration at the event. He stressed the importance of staying informed on new developments through involvement in local and global cyber communities.

In addition to learning about threats, attendees can discover open source tools for both offensive testing and protection. Anant discussed upcoming tracks on software supply chain security and how organizations need to take a holistic view of their dependencies and credentials to fully address vulnerabilities. Conferences like nCon are valuable for exposing individuals and companies to a variety of perspectives and solutions that they may be unaware of in order to help strengthen global cyber security.

Key Takeaways

Three key takeaways from the discussion are:

It is important to understand both attack techniques as well as defensive strategies in order to adequately assess risks and strengthen security.

Events like nCon provide opportunities to learn from security researchers and connect with peers to gain knowledge and inspiration that can lead to new career or business opportunities.

Organizations need to take a holistic view of their full software supply chain and dependencies beyond just code in order to fully address vulnerabilities.