Libsyn Directory

Understanding Ransomware and Defense Strategies

Release Date: 04/09/2025

Easy Prey

Everyone’s talking about AI these days, especially in cybersecurity. Sure, artificial intelligence can boost your defenses, but cybercriminals have noticed too. Now they're crafting phishing emails so believable it’s scary and finding clever paths around spam filters while zeroing in on vulnerabilities you didn’t even realize were there. Today, Aviad Hasnis joins the show. He's the CTO of Cynet Security and spent years running cybersecurity missions for the Israeli Defense Forces. Aviad’s here to help us figure out what the changing threat landscape really means, whether...

Author Scams Exposed

Easy Prey

Writers pour their hearts into their work, but unfortunately, that passion can make them prime targets for scams. From fake agents and vanity publishers to slick marketing schemes and social media impersonators, the tactics have only gotten more sophisticated over time. In this episode, we dig into the murky world of publishing scams and how they work and who they target. Along with why even experienced authors can get caught off guard. Today’s guest is Victoria Strauss. Victoria is the author of nine fantasy and historical novels for adults and teens, and she’s also the co-founder of...

Tricked by Followers and Badges

Easy Prey

What if your social media success was built on deception, and it was working? In today’s episode, we hear from someone who knows exactly how that happens. Tim O’Hearn is a former software engineer and the author of Framed: A Villain’s Perspective on Social Media, a book that pulls back the curtain on how follower factories, automation, and persuasive technologies have shaped the online world we now take for granted. Tim doesn’t just theorize, he built these systems himself. Tim walks us through how his small side gig growing Instagram accounts evolved into a lucrative business, one...

Only 10 Seconds to Expose a Scam

Easy Prey

What if you could stop a scam in real-time before the damage is done? In this episode, I’m joined by Nick Stapleton, an investigative journalist and the face behind Scam Interceptors, the BAFTA award-winning BBC series that exposes online fraud and steps in to protect victims as scams unfold. Nick brings a decade of undercover documentary experience to his current mission: fighting digital deception and empowering everyday people to stay safe. He shares jaw-dropping stories from the front lines, including the near miss that almost caught him off guard, and breaks down the complex...

Gambling, Lies, and Millions Stolen from Celebrities

Easy Prey

What happens when the drive to succeed masks deep emotional wounds and addiction? In this episode, Jonathan Schwartz shares a powerful and painfully honest account of how his life unraveled. Once one of Hollywood’s most trusted financial advisors, Jonathan worked with icons like Beyoncé, Mariah Carey, and Gwyneth Paltrow. On the surface, he had it all. But underneath the success was a secret struggle with gambling and drug addiction that led him to steal millions from the very clients who trusted him most. His fall from grace was dramatic and public, ending in a prison sentence...

Human Side of Fraud: Empathy, Education, & Evolution

Easy Prey

People used to think fraud was something that happened in the shadows, rare, distant, and mostly affecting big companies. But after talking to PJ Rohall, it’s clear that fraud is evolving fast, and it’s showing up in places most of us don’t even think to look. In this episode, I sit down with PJ Rohall, Head of Fraud Strategy and Education at SEON and co-founder of About Fraud. PJ’s work is all about staying ahead of scammers and helping businesses and individuals understand how fraud actually works. From synthetic identities and AI-powered scams to account takeovers and refund fraud,...

Identity Is The New Security Perimeter

Easy Prey

Sometimes it feels like every new technology we adopt comes with a new risk we didn’t see coming. From AI and data breaches to phishing scams and ransomware, it's clear we live in a time when cybersecurity isn’t just a tech issue, it’s a human issue. In this episode, I talk with Jeff Reich, Executive Director of the Identity Defined Security Alliance. Jeff has been in the cybersecurity world since the early days, with decades of experience helping organizations protect what matters most. His passion for identity security and risk management runs deep, and he brings a thoughtful...

Your Car Is Spying On You What It’s Collecting and Who It’s Telling

Easy Prey

I used to think of my car as just a tool to get from point A to point B. But after this conversation, I can’t help but see it as something else entirely, a powerful data collection device that knows far more about me than I realized. From where I go and who I text to how I drive and even what’s on my phone, today’s vehicles are gathering a staggering amount of personal information. In this episode, I talk with Andrea Amico, the founder of . Andrea is one of the leading voices in automotive data privacy and someone who’s spent years uncovering the hidden ways cars collect, store,...

Why Everyone’s A Target

Easy Prey

Some scams are so convincing, they’re almost impossible to spot. With phishing emails that look like they’re from your bank, deep fake videos that mimic real people, and AI-generated messages that feel personal, it’s getting harder to know what’s real and what’s a trap. In this episode, I sit down with Gabrielle Hempel, a security operations specialist at Exabeam and a current law student at Purdue University. Gabrielle brings a sharp perspective shaped by years in cybersecurity, a master’s in cybersecurity and global affairs from NYU, and hands-on experience navigating everything...

Child Exploitation Cyber Investigations

Easy Prey

Technology is a double-edged sword. It can empower us, connect us, and solve problems, but it can also be used to exploit, manipulate, and harm. When it comes to protecting children online, that line gets especially thin. Digital forensics, AI-powered image classification, and global law enforcement collaboration are now essential tools for keeping families safe in a world that moves faster than most of us can keep up. Debbie Garner knows this world intimately. She’s a retired Special Agent in charge with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and former commander of the state’s Internet...

More Episodes

When it comes to cybersecurity, most people think about firewalls, passwords, and antivirus software. But what about the attackers themselves? Understanding how they operate is just as important as having the right defenses in place. That’s where Paul Reid comes in. As the Vice President of Adversary Research at AttackIQ, Paul and his team work to stay one step ahead of cybercriminals by thinking like them and identifying vulnerabilities before they can be exploited.

In this episode, we dive into the world of cyber threats, ransomware, and the business of hacking. Paul shares insights from his 25+ years in cybersecurity, including his experience tracking nation-state attackers, analyzing ransomware-as-a-service, and why cybercrime has become such a highly organized industry. We also talk about what businesses and individuals can do to protect themselves, from understanding threat intelligence to why testing your backups might save you from disaster. Whether you're in cybersecurity or just trying to keep your data safe, this conversation is packed with insights you won’t want to miss.

Show Notes:

[00:58] Paul is the VP of Adversary Research at AttackIQ.
[01:30] His team wants to help their customers be more secure.
[01:52] Paul has been in cybersecurity for 25 years. He began working in Novell Networks and then moved to directory services with Novell and Microsoft, Active Directory, LDAP, and more.
[02:32] He also helped design classification systems and then worked for a startup. He also ran a worldwide threat hunting team. Paul has an extensive background in networks and cybersecurity.
[03:49] Paul was drawn to AttackIQ because they do breach attack simulation.
[04:22] His original goal was actually to be a banker. Then he went back to his original passion, computer science.
[06:05] We learn Paul's story of being a victim of ransomware or a scam. A company he was working for almost fell for a money transfer scam.
[09:12] If something seems off, definitely question it.
[10:17] Ransomware is an economically driven cybercrime. Attackers try to get in through social engineering, brute force attack, password spraying, or whatever means possible.
[11:13] Once they get in, they find whatever is of value and encrypt it or do something else to extort money from you.
[12:14] Ransomware as a service (RaaS) has brought ransomware to the masses.
[13:49] We discuss some ethics in these criminal organizations. Honest thieves?
[16:24] Threats look a lot more real when you see that they have your information.
[17:12] Paul shares a phishing scam story with just enough information to make the potential victim click on it.
[18:01] There was a takedown of LockBit in 2020, but they had a resurgence. It's a decentralized ransomware as a service model that allows affiliates to keep on earning, even if the main ones go down.
[20:14] Many of the affiliates are smash and grab, the nation states are a little more patient.
[21:11] Attackers are branching out into other areas and increasing their attack service, targeting Linux and macOS.
[22:17] The resiliency of the ransomware as a service setup and how they've distributed the risk across multiple affiliates.
[23:42] There's an ever growing attack service and things are getting bigger.
[25:06] AttackIQ is able to run emulations in a production environment.
[26:20] Having the ability to continuously test and find new areas really makes networks more cyber resilient.
[29:55] We talk about whether to pay ransoms and how to navigate these situations.
[31:05] The best solution is to do due diligence, updates, patches, and separate backups from the system.
[35:19] Dealing with ransomware is a no win situation. Everyone is different.

Thanks for joining us on Easy Prey. Be sure to subscribe to our podcast on iTunes and leave a nice review.

Show Notes:

Links and Resources:

TOPICS