Moving Fast, Securely with Laura Bell Main, CEO of SafeStack

CIO Exchange Podcast

How can companies move fast, securely? In this episode, Yadin sits down with Laura Bell Main, CEO of SafeStack and co-author of the book Security for Everyone, to discuss securing organizations of all sizes, navigating security conversations when selling to large enterprises, and some common missteps with security and AI. Laura dives into practical tips for both growing a company and prioritizing security.
---------

Key Quotes:

“We need to remember that security is the oldest problem there is, so it isn't something you grow into. It isn't something that suddenly appears one Tuesday morning and you're like, oh, right, security matters now.”

“This is how your company is seen in the world. It's a bit crass to say security can help you sell, but it really kind of can.”

“We're never going to win. We just have to give up on that entirely. There is no 100 percent secure, there's no done. That's okay, that's cool.”

---------

Timestamps:

(01:16) How smaller organizations can become secure

(05:21) Security can help you sell

(06:05) Communicating security measures when pitching

(08:54) Security and AI tools

(11:01) Putting data in LLMs

(17:24) AI explainability requirements in the EU

(26:37) Understanding ROI in cybersecurity

(32:40) The role of dopamine in cybersecurity

--------

Links:

Laura Bell Main on LinkedIn

CIO Exchange on X
Yadin Porter de León on X

OWASP Top 10 for Large Language Model Applications

[Subscribe to the Podcast]
On Apple Podcast
For more podcasts, video and in-depth research go to https://www.vmware.com/cio