Using Criminal Skills for Good - a Memoir of a Burglar for Hire

Phishy Business

In this episode of Phishy Business, we discuss social engineering, the professional con game of burglary for hire, and different aspects of how this very specialized skill can impact organizations and individuals.

Our special guest is Jenny Radcliffe, who was our very first interview on the podcast and made a return appearance in our episode on job hacking. Jenny is well known for being able to get in anywhere and past anyone. She has turned a schooling in the art of breaking and entering during her childhood, into a celebrated career as an expert in social engineering, where she exploits the flaws and weaknesses in top-grade security operations.

Now, Jenny has returned for a third visit to tell us all about her new book, People Hacker. It’s a memoir about her unusual career as an ethical burglar and as you can imagine, it’s filled with fascinating stories.

In ‘Using Criminal Skills for Good - a Memoir of a Burglar for Hire’, we discuss:

• The importance of context in social engineering and how good people hackers adapt their methods according to the scenario and culture
• How real-world social engineering compares to the virtual world
• The importance of diversity in security
• Why Jenny didn’t go over to the dark side despite having all the skills of a successful criminal
• How everyone is hackable and it’s important to make security relevant to everyone
• How to do penetration testing well and without negatively impacting employees