Welcome back to the show! Hacker Valley Studio podcast features Host Ron Eddings, as he explores the world of cybersecurity through the eyes of professionals in the industry. We cover everything from inspirational real-life stories in tech, to highlighting influential cybersecurity companies, and we do so in a fun and enthusiastic way. We’re making cybersecurity accessible, creating a whole new form of entertainment: cybertainment.
Episodes
7 days ago
7 days ago
Cybersecurity isn’t just red or blue anymore... it’s purple, white, and deeply human. Maril Vernon, award-winning ethical hacker and Senior Solutions Architect at NetSPI, returns to the Hacker Valley Studio to discuss purple teaming as the most future-proof career path in cyber. She opens up about mentorship, burnout, compensation realities, and how we’re still failing the fundamentals.
Together, Ron and Maril dig into what purple teaming really is (and isn’t), why soft skills matter more than ever, and how defenders are the frontline signal source for law enforcement. From guiding her mom into IR to co-founding Mind Over Cyber, Maril embodies what it means to show up for the cyber community and demand more from the culture itself.
Impactful Moments
00:00 - Introduction
01:01 - Maril’s role at NetSPI
03:00 - Why purple skills are future-proof
05:19 - Salary truths in purple teaming
08:30 - Know your value, negotiate wisely
13:07 - How defenders enable law enforcement
16:22 - The real meaning of purple teaming
18:39 - Common misconceptions debunked
24:45 - People are always the soft spot
26:01 - The two security stack must-haves
29:00 - Mom made it to incident response
30:48 - Maril’s mentorship philosophy
34:09 - Why you need to post anyway
36:35 - What Mind Over Cyber is really about
40:00 - CISOs are burning out silently
41:31 - Closing thoughts
Links:
Connect with our guest, Maril Vernon: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marilvernon
Check out our upcoming events: https://www.hackervalley.com/livestreams
Join our creative mastermind and stand out as a cybersecurity professional:
https://www.patreon.com/hackervalleystudio
Love Hacker Valley Studio? Pick up some swag: https://store.hackervalley.com
Continue the conversation by joining our Discord: https://hackervalley.com/discord
Become a sponsor of the show to amplify your brand: https://hackervalley.com/work-with-us/
Thursday Jun 19, 2025
Thursday Jun 19, 2025
The new cybersecurity pioneers aren’t chasing alerts, they’re building with AI. But what happens when tools meant to assist begin making decisions for us? And what skills do we lose when machines fill the gaps we used to grow into?
In this episode, Chris Cochran, CEO and Founder of Commandant, returns to Hacker Valley Studio with an insider view on building in the AI boom. He shares why he’s betting on incident response over the “AI SOC,” what it means to use AI with integrity, and how this moment mirrors the early industrial revolutions: chaotic, risky, but ripe with once-in-a-career opportunity.
Impactful Moments:
00:00 – Introduction
02:11 – Launch of Commandant AI
03:06 – Early-stage LLM opportunities
05:26 – Built first AI co-pilot in 4 hours
06:00 – AI bot tops HackerOne leaderboard
07:44 – AI used for and against orgs
10:14 – Focus on incident response, not AI SOC
12:34 – Reducing cost of prolonged incidents
14:01 – Cybersecurity changing every 2 months
16:58 – AI causing rapid skill loss
21:59 – AI-assisted job interviews detected
24:49 – AI lacks business context for blocking
27:30 – Daily AI use pays long-term dividends
Links:
Connect with our guest, Chris Cochran: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrishvm/
Check out our upcoming events: https://www.hackervalley.com/livestreams
Join our creative mastermind and stand out as a cybersecurity professional:
https://www.patreon.com/hackervalleystudio
Love Hacker Valley Studio? Pick up some swag: https://store.hackervalley.com
Continue the conversation by joining our Discord: https://hackervalley.com/discord
Become a sponsor of the show to amplify your brand: https://hackervalley.com/work-with-us/
Thursday Jun 12, 2025
Thursday Jun 12, 2025
What happens when AI refuses to be replaced? This episode kicks off with a chilling real-world example of an AI threatening blackmail—and only gets more intense from there.
Host Ron Eddings unpacks the terrifyingly innovative ways AI is altering the cybersecurity threat landscape. From deepfakes convincing enough to fool your own family to auto-summarizing email clients acting as unintentional insiders, the stakes have never been higher. Ron also shares insights from his brand-new book Attack Surface Management, co-authored with MJ Kaufman and published by O'Reilly, and breaks down why the simplest social engineering tactics remain the most dangerous—even in the age of advanced AI.
Impactful Moments:
00:00 - Introduction
02:30 - Model Context Protocol explained
05:00 - Google's VEO-3 and fake riot videos
07:00 - Fake Facebook ads pushing malware
09:30 - Social engineering still reigns supreme
13:30 - Using AI to write malicious emails
16:30 - Calendly phishing and credential theft
19:00 - Gemini and the risk of auto-summarization
21:30 - LLM access to your private documents
22:45 - Takeaways and protecting your environment
Links:
Connect with Ron on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ronaldeddings/
Grab a copy of Ron’s new book, “Attack Surface Management: Strategies and Techniques for Safeguarding Your Digital Assets”: https://a.co/d/1nmPod2
Check out the full article on “The Rise of ‘Vibe Hacking’ Is the Next AI Nightmare” here: https://www.wired.com/story/youre-not-ready-for-ai-hacker-agents/
Check out our upcoming events: https://www.hackervalley.com/livestreams
Join our creative mastermind and stand out as a cybersecurity professional:
https://www.patreon.com/hackervalleystudio
Love Hacker Valley Studio? Pick up some swag: https://store.hackervalley.com
Continue the conversation by joining our Discord: https://hackervalley.com/discord
Become a sponsor of the show to amplify your brand: https://hackervalley.com/work-with-us/
Thursday Jun 05, 2025
Thursday Jun 05, 2025
What if Zero Trust isn’t a framework, but the only viable cybersecurity strategy—more about people than products?
In this episode, George Finney, CISO at the University of Texas System and author of Project Zero Trust, reveals the human-first truth behind the Zero Trust movement, and why it’s not something you buy but something you build. George shares stories from hacking a college database to launching a deepfake of himself trained on his own books, all while breaking down how AI and creativity are reshaping security leadership.
Impactful Moments:
00:00 - Introduction
01:16 - Cyber Hall of Fame recognition
07:00 - Hacked his college to solve mail
09:00 - Took startup job without paycheck
14:14 - Zero Trust is a strategy, not tool
17:00 - Tailoring security like a custom suit
23:29 - AI strategy through Zero Trust lens
29:30 - Built a Zero Trust voice clone hotline
36:00 - You don’t need to be a CISO
38:30 - Why weirdos make cybersecurity stronger
Links:
Connect with our guest, George Finney: https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgefinney/
Check out George’s books on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B01MT0C6X3
Check out our upcoming events: https://www.hackervalley.com/livestreams
Join our creative mastermind and stand out as a cybersecurity professional:
https://www.patreon.com/hackervalleystudio
Love Hacker Valley Studio? Pick up some swag: https://store.hackervalley.com
Continue the conversation by joining our Discord: https://hackervalley.com/discord
Become a sponsor of the show to amplify your brand: https://hackervalley.com/work-with-us/
Thursday May 29, 2025
Thursday May 29, 2025
You won’t be replaced by AI—you’ll be replaced by someone using it better.
Returning guest Marco Figueroa is back with a frontline report on the AI agent boom. This isn’t a prediction—it’s a tactical update from someone tracking every release, every benchmark battle, and every edge worth chasing.
In this episode, Ron is joined by Marco as he breaks down the rapid evolution of AI agents—from Claude Code to Codex to Google Flow. He explains why general-purpose models are leveling off, how specialized tools are reshaping the landscape, and why creativity is now your most valuable edge. Whether you're in code, ops, or content, your two-year advantage starts right here.
Impactful Moments
00:00 - Introduction
01:08 - AI agents are no longer hype
03:45 - Major LLM releases and what's next
05:32 - The Grok delay and pricing drama
07:30 - Why general models are losing steam
10:50 - Benchmark manipulation and model specialization
14:15 - The future belongs to creatives
22:05 - The next AI drops to watch
Links:
Connect with our guest, Marco Figueroa: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marco-figueroa-re/
Check out our upcoming events: https://www.hackervalley.com/livestreams
Join our creative mastermind and stand out as a cybersecurity professional:
https://www.patreon.com/hackervalleystudio
Love Hacker Valley Studio? Pick up some swag: https://store.hackervalley.com
Continue the conversation by joining our Discord: https://hackervalley.com/discord
Become a sponsor of the show to amplify your brand: https://hackervalley.com/work-with-us/