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Modern field guide to security and privacy

Cybersecurity Podcast: Stuxnet, sexism, CEOs, and surveillance

New America's Peter Singer and Passcode's Sara Sorcher interview technologist and author Bruce Schneier, Endgame chief executive Nate Fick, and journalist Kim Zetter on the latest episode of The Cybersecurity Podcast. 

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AP/File
A worker stood at the entrance of the reactor of Bushehr nuclear power plant, which was the target of the Stuxnet computer worm.

Should the government be responsible for defending private companies against sophisticated cyberattacks launched by nation-states? How did Stuxnet, a cyberoperation believed to be launched by the US and Israel to target Iran's nuclear facilities, usher in a new era of warfare? 
Is the relative lack of women in cybersecurity a problem for the industry? 

These are all questions addressed in a new monthly podcast cohosted by think tank New America and Passcode, The Christian Science Monitor's new section on security and privacy. You can listen to The Cybersecurity Podcast on Soundcloud below, or download episodes and subscribe on iTunes.

In the third episode of The Cybersecurity Podcast, New America's Peter Singer and Passcode's Sara Sorcher chat with Bruce Schneier, prolific author and chief technology officer at Resilient Systems, about the challenges of publicly blaming countries for cyberattacks – and whether the private sector or the government should take the lead role when nation states attack companies. 

They also hear from Nate Fick, the chief executive officer of Endgame, a venture-backed security intelligence software company, about how he's leveraging cybersecurity solutions once produced just for the government into the private sector.  

Wired's Kim Zetter, author of "Countdown to Zero Day: Stuxnet and the Launch of the World's First Digital Weapon," joins the panel discussion to talk about using cyberoperations as an alternative to other military means – such as airstrikes – and the vulnerability of US critical infrastructure to Stuxnet-like weapons. 

The panel also talks about the gender diversity issues bedeviling the cybersecurity industry and how to bridge the gap.

In previous episodes, The Cybersecurity Podcast team interviewed Alex Stamos, Yahoo's chief information security officer and world renowned cybersecurity expert, about his company's new end-to-end e-mail encryption rollout, what it’s like to lead a team of “Paranoids” and why people who have his job are so stressed out.

They also interviewed Lt. Gen. Edward Cardon, the Army's top cyber commander, about how the Army is beefing up its cyberforces, competition for talent with the private sector, and what role the military should play when a nation-state attacks a private company.

 

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