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Whether you’re in vacation or you have a few days off, you can also relax and learn something new. Podcasts are one of the best ways to be informed and entertained, so we compiled below a list of the best cybersecurity podcasts we’ve listened to so far.
From the latest cybersecurity news to the best privacy tips, we tried to cover all areas but feel free to drop a comment and share some recommendations!
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1.Cyberwire Daily
Want to start your day listening to the infosecurity news? The Cyberwire Daily podcast is probably your best option. This podcast already has over 600 episodes and Cyberwire also posts other insightful podcasts on longer topics.
We particularly loved the first episode of Hacking Humans and hope to hear more content there.
2.Risky Business
The Risky Biz podcast is one of the best resources for those working in information security but it’s also great for beginners or just curious onlookers, as it’s only once a week and up to an hour in length. The Risky Business podcasts cover cybersecurity news but also feature interviews with industry experts. If you don’t work in the industry, we’d recommend checking out their more political stuff, it reveals amazing insights into hacking (not as shown in Hollywood but just as much of a wild ride). The latest episode covers China’s hacker scene. Do also check out earlier episodes like North Korea, “cyber norms” and diplomacy, Kaspersky is officially toast or Actually yes, “cyber war” is real for Ukraine.
3. Complete privacy and security podcast
The Cambridge Analytica scandal revealed just how much the info you share on social media can be used for nefarious purposes, so investing in your online privacy is something all of us should do more of.
The Complete Privacy and Security podcast by Michael Bazzel really explains how to become digitally invisible. While the techniques discussed will take up a huge chunk of time to implement, some of them are essential if you value your own privacy. We particularly liked the episodes on New to Privacy, The Consequences of Leaving Facebook (we also wrote about how to control your Facebook privacy here) and A Conversation with the EFF.
4. Daily Information Security Podcast – Stormcast
While podcasts can be endlessly entertaining, it’s sometimes hard to find the focus to dedicate 30 minutes or a full hour in order to listen to one.
If you want to keep up with cyber security news and trends, the Stormcast from the Internet Storm Center is the best choice.
Security podcasts in that series are under 10 minutes, so they can be fit in any busy schedule.
5. Troy Hunt’s Weekly Update Podcast
For a weekly roundup, Troy Hunt’s podcast is always an entertaining listen. From cyber security news to recaps of all the major events from around the world, Troy covers mostly everything that’s happening in the infosec industry. Creator of Have I been pwned? and author of security courses on Pluralsight, Troy is definitely one of the best security influencers to follow – he just won the prize for the Best Overall Security Blog at the European Security Blogger Awards.
In no particular order, we bookmarked these episodes:
Weekly Update 63 with a US Congress testimony, Weekly Update 68 with a visit to Cloudflare headquarters and Weekly Update 82 where he explains how password extortion is the latest online scam to avoid.
6. Unsupervised Learning Podcast
Daniel Miessler is a legend in infosec circles, having covered technology and security for more than two decades. His blog is also a treat but the weekly podcast is a more pleasant way to digest current events.
We recommend giving a listen to episode 127 for the wrap-up on how Alexa leaked a private conversation, episode 119 for how Atlanta got hit with a devastating ransomware attack and and episode 113 which covers Android cryptojacking and the Huawei ban in the US.
7. Darknet Diaries
If you’re heading to the beach or planning a longer vacation, the Darknet Diaries security podcast can successfully replace the thriller book you’re planning to pack. While it only has 17 episodes so far, all of them cover the most exciting and twisted cyber security breaches and risks.
From the epic hack of Mt. Gox that resulted in 850,000 bitcoins being stolen or the Carna Botnet that did not have a malicious purpose, Darknet Diaries is always an entertaining listen.
We also recommend the Misadventures of a Nation State Actor, which really delves into the world of advanced, government-backed hacking.
8. 7 Minute Security
As the name indicates, this is a bite-sized podcast focused on learning more about infosecurity. It’s not quite 7 minutes long, but it’s an under 20 minute listen from Brian Johnson, a security consultant with a penetration testing background who does an amazing job of sharing what he learns about the field. The most fun listen is probably The CryptoLocker Song, where he goes into detail about a ransomware infection taking hold of an organization, followed by the PwnPro 101 for those who would like to improve their penetration testing skills.
We also recommend the GDPR Me ASAP episode for a fun, sing-song summary of the privacy regulation that resulted in you receiving a lot of emails.
9. The Social-Engineer Podcast
When it comes to cybersecurity for beginners, one of the most entertaining fields is definitely social engineering or using psychological tricks and manipulation to gain access to an organization’s data. The Social-Engineer podcast is the best security podcast if this is something you want to find out more about, featuring plenty of fascinating interviews.
We recommend the interview with Jayson Street, who talks about how Diet Pepsi almost landed him in a Lebanese prison, or the Tim Larkin one that explains why situational awareness is extremely important for your safety.
10. Paul’s Security Weekly
A great weekend listen is Paul’s Security Weekly where Paul Asadoorian and other security experts gather around the table to discuss the headlines or interview various guests. While most other podcasts can be a great listen even if you don’t work in the Infosecurity field, this one is aimed at professionals and can sometimes be a bit too “technical” for the layperson.
We recommend this episode about CIA’s Vault 7 leak and the one about Alexa spying on users.
11. Silver Bullet Security Podcast
Published by Synopsys once a month, the Silver Bullet Security Podcast hosted by Dr. Gary McGraw, a great author, is one of the most in-depth security podcasts we’ve found so far.
The May episode focuses on topics like the famous Spectre vulnerability and the rise of cryptocurrencies but we also recommend the Anonymity and Internet Privacy discussion – you might pick up a few more valuable tips on enhancing your own security setup.
12. Future Out Loud Podcast
Produced by IEE SSIT (Society on social implications of technology), the Future Out Loud Podcasts don’t always focus on cyber security but they always manage to pick a tangential (and fascinating!) topic.
One of the best episodes is definitely the Should We Trust Robots? discussion between cybersecurity expert Benjamin Turnbull and philosopher-ethicist Jai Galliott. Do make sure you also check out the WikiCyberLeaks episode, it contains a great discussion about how the CIA was hacking consumer devices to spy on US citizens.
13. The Human Factor
Another fascinating podcast on social engineering is The Human Factor by Jenny Radcliffe, also known as “The People Hacker.”
When she’s not delivering amazing keynotes at TEDx, Trend Micro or Infosec, she’s interviewing award-winning specialists in cybersecurity – and doing all this with a charming British accent. We highly recommend listening to her Kay Roer interview and the Holly Graceful episode, which explains more about the world of pentesting.
14. The Security Ledger
In general, The Security Ledger is a great infosecurity publication and their podcast is just as good. Covering everything from politics to hot topics like the standards of IoT security, this podcast is a weekly offering that’s always a great listen. We recommend episode 100 for an interview with Estonia’s former CIO about electronic voting, episode 91 about the epidemic of fake news and the treat of cryptojacking, and episode 88 for a fascinating look at how cyber criminals launder money after pulling off an online scam (we wrote about the most common scams here).
15. Source Code Podcast
This security podcast is one of the newest on the list, so it doesn’t have a lot of episodes. The Source Code Podcast was started in 2017 by Chris Sanders, a trainer who created a great free online course for those who want to start working in information security.
What we like most about this podcast is the fact that it avoids news and focuses on security experts – how they started their journey in the field and what their daily challenges are. Many of you wrote to us to ask how to start a cyber security career, so we recommend listening to a few of these episodes to find the path that seems best for you. Episode 6 from season with Jennifer Kolde, who worked as an investigator for Mandiant/FireEye, is a great listen, as well as the fifth episode from season 1, which is a great interview with Gerald Combs, the original developer of Wireshark.
16. Smashing Security
Another cybersecurity podcast that should be on your list is the one hosted by one of the most known cybersecurity professionals and an award-winning security blogger, Graham Cluley. Featuring more than 100 episodes, all of them cover the most exciting and current cyber security issues, delving deep into topics such as password security, phising scams, sextorsion and many more. Each episode includes lots of useful resources and links which might help. We suggest listening to episode 104 in which you’ll discover phishing campaigns tests for employees and other useful examples.
This summer, the podcast also won the first prize at the “Best Security Podcast” category, during the European Security Blogger Awards announced at Infosec Europe, in London.
17. Security Now
Whether you work in cyber security for a few months or you are a veteran in the industry, you’ve probably heard about Steve Gibson , the man “who coined the term spyware and created the first anti-spyware program”. He’s also the host of a weekly infosec podcast called “Security Now” that we suggest to check out. The other host is Leo Laporte, and together they discuss hot topics in cyber security, focusing on practical examples and providing actionable advice on how to stay safe online. You can find here a list of all episodes available
18. Cyber Security Sauna
Produced by F-Secure, some of the leaders of the cybersecurity industry, Cyber Security Sauna (#CyberSauna) is just as hot as the name suggests.
Taking some very high level concepts and breaking them down with other experts, CyberSauna achieves a great mix of educational and entertaining. To start off, we recommend the 18th episode, enticingly titled “Online Dating and Trading Data for Love”.
Another insightful talk focuses on disturbing phenomena like fake news, the rise of bots on social channels and deepfakes, so check out episode 11 for more on The Rise of AI and Deliberate Deception.
19. Down the Security Rabbit Hole
Hosted by Rafal Los, a highly respected security expert, and James Jardine, the leader of a penetration testing and review company, Down the Security Rabbit Hole is a good listen for those already in the industry or in adjacent businesses.
The episode on biometrics for authentication did a great job in breaking down how secure this type of authentication is (spoiler alert: not very!) and whether this matters or not. Depending on your level of cybersecurity knowledge, the episode on forensics and how both companies and authorities investigate cyber incidents is a fascinating listen.
20. Smashing Security
When we originally published this roundup, we inexcusably forgot to include Smashing Security, one of the most established security podcasts around.
Hosted by the famous Graham Cluley and Carole Theriault, Smashing Security is probably one of the most engaging listens around. The two hosts have a great sense of humor and their approach is perfect for both newcomers to the area and industry veteran. Some listens we recommend is the one covering Huawei’s troubles, this one covering the biggest sextortion scam in history and the “Hacky sack hack hack” episode (that one was particularly engaging!).
21. Shared Security
A cyber security auditor and an ethical hacker are the two hosts of The Shared Security podcast, another great recommendation from our readers.
We particularly liked the episode that focused on Fortnite scams, one of the most popular games in the world (especially with kids!) and Tanya Janca’s contribution about women and minorities in cybersecurity.
These are just a few security podcasts to enhance your knowledge this year. If you have any resources to add, including YouTube channels, do let us know, we’ll be happy to update the list.
