Easy Prey Podcast

Most of us would not consider ourselves to be an easy target for a predator. But we may be communicating signs that we’re unaware of. Today’s guest is Mike Mandel. Mike’s career has covered many different fields from stage performer, trainer, psychotherapist, martial arts instructor, writer, and corporate speaker. Mike is a renowned hypnotist with…

Data privacy has often been an after-thought in software and platform development. Data breaches have increased consumer awareness and laws such as GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act) have been enacted. Programmers and engineers need to think about what data they are collecting, how it is being stored and accessed,…

Catfishing is when a person creates a fake identity often with corresponding social media accounts, phone numbers, photos, and addresses targeting a specific victim for abuse or fraud. These catfishers are organized, patient, and have a playbook that they follow to gain the trust of their target over the course of weeks, months, or even…

Very few people want to share their stories of being targeted by a scam. Losing money to a scam can make us feel gullible, ashamed, and afraid. We worry that other people will think we’re at fault for falling for an obvious scam. But one romance scam survivor realized the opposite. Sharing her experience with…

Keeping children safe online is a concern for every parent. Children can have a technical skill that is far more advanced than their cognitive development and it is not easy to know how and what boundaries to set.  Today’s guest is Susan McLean. Susan is Australia’s foremost expert in the area of cyber safety and…

If you’ve got student loans, you feel the pressure of that financial obligation, but watch out. There are scammers looking to take advantage of your situation, offering student loan consolidation or elimination for a fee. Our guest today is Robert Farrington. Robert is founder of The College Investor. He has been featured in many media outlets…

In this episode, we deviate a bit from our traditional topics to incorporate the growing diversity in the Infosec world. In the past, this has been a male dominated field, but the culture is changing.  Our guest today is Eleanor Dallaway. Eleanor is the Editorial Director at Infosecurity Magazine, and she is at the front…

As we start the new year, we often contemplate resolutions and adopting new behaviors into our lives. Good mentoring relationships can have an amazingly powerful impact on both our personal and professional lives, but a bad one can lead to a devastating outcome. Learn how to identify a great match in today’s episode with Mark…

Trust is important for our employees, our clients, and our potential customers and as entrepreneurs, we need to learn how to create it. As business professionals, we need to learn how to choose who to be in partnerships with so that we are able to protect ourselves and our businesses from lawsuits and poor decisions.…

Criminals don’t just randomly pick their targets. They look for easy prey. Find out what you might inadvertently be doing that makes a criminal choose you as their next victim. Today’s guest is James Casey. James has made a life-long career out of understanding why people break the law. He began in law enforcement and…

Our body can give clues to what we are thinking or feeling and can reveal what we’re saying is the truth or deception. How can we use that fact to detect when others are being deceptive? Today’s guest is Traci Brown. Time magazine has named Traci as one of the nation’s top deception detection experts. She’s trained…

Most of us have received calls claiming to be from Microsoft Tech Support. But these tech support scam calls are evolving. Tech support scams are a big and profitable business, and scammers are working hard to steal your money. The best way to protect yourself from these scams is to learn how to spot them…

Is there such a thing as an ethical hacker? Do all hackers use their skills to attack infrastructures? If you’re interested in ethical hacking and penetration testing, this is the episode for you.  Today’s guest is Ed Skoudis. Ed has taught upwards of 20,000 security professionals globally and his contributions to information security have had…

With Giving Tuesday right around the corner, it is important to make sure that the money we give gets to the causes we are passionate about. In the midst of the season of giving, scammers are working to get as much of your charity as they can. Today’s guests are Michael Thatcher and Zachary Weinsteiger.…

As cybercrime grows more sophisticated day by day, so do technical defenses. But great technology is no match for an employee clicking on a simple phishing email. Psychological security is designed to protect the human mind from manipulation that leads to compromises. Today’s guest is Adam Anderson. Adam is chairman of the board for Hook…

When Brett Johnson was a cybercriminal, he was known as the “original internet Godfather.” He started one of the first organized cybercrime groups, ran a cybercriminal empire, was placed on the United States Most Wanted List, and created modern financial cybercrime as we know it. But that’s not the end of the story. See The…

Embezzlement is on the rise, but only a  few incidents ever get reported to law enforcement. Why do people steal and how are they doing it? What can business owners do to help prevent these crimes and what should they do if they suspect them? Our guest today is Kelly Paxton. She has more than…

With the cost of surveillance and mass information gathering becoming cheaper and easier, laws are struggling to keep pace. Who is fighting for transparency and working to protect your digital rights? Our guest today is Danny O’Brien. Danny has been an activist for online free speech and privacy for over 20 years. He co-founded the Open Rights…

The pandemic has taken an economic toll on millions of lives. People are struggling, people want to help, and others are looking to take advantage of both. Before panicking about your bills or giving to the latest charitable cause, you need to listen to this episode to make sure your money is going where you…

Information security is not just technical. There is a human aspect involved and fixing that is more than just identification and awareness. Our guest today is Ira Winkler. Ira is the president of Secure Mentem and the author of the book You Can Stop Stupid. He is referred to as the modern-day James Bond, given his skills…

With the 2020 elections right around the corner, do you know who is trying to influence you and how they’re doing it? Listen on to learn about the ins and outs of disinformation, misinformation, interference, and influence.  Morgan Wright is an internationally recognized expert on cybersecurity strategy, cyberterrorism, and advanced technology. His landmark testimony before…

With more and more dating moving online, how do we separate real honest people from those who are misrepresenting themselves and the outright scammers? Our guest today is Kezia Noble. Kezia is a leading female dating and attraction expert for men and author of the bestselling book The Noble Art of Seducing Women.  Kezia’s company helps…

Have you ever received a call from a stranger asking you to verify some info about you or someone else? It could be a perfectly legitimate call to update records. But more likely, it’s the start of a social engineering attack. Hackers could hack their way into your personal accounts or company system. But it’s…

If your reputation or the reputation of your business gets trashed online, it can have a lasting impact. But there are things that you can do today to limit the impact of negative online statements about you and some of them are easier than you might expect.  Our guest today is Chris Silver Smith. Chris is the…

Conspiracy theories are all crazy, right? Well, maybe not. There’s some history as to why so many people believe in them. What we really need is a conspiracy theory detection kit and that’s what we have in today’s episode. Our guest today is Dr. Michael Shermer. Dr. Shermer is the founding publisher of Skeptic Magazine,…