Tribe of Hackers

5Cheryl Biswas

“Attackers are the problem—as are ignorance, complacency, and convenience. Hackers are problem-solvers, troubleshooters, and among the best people I know.”

Twitter: @3ncr1pt3d • Websites: whitehatcheryl.wordpress.com and www.linkedin.com/in/cherylbiswas

Cheryl Biswas loves being a threat intel analyst with TD Bank in Canada and assessing threat actors, vulnerabilities, and exploits. She is a political science graduate, is ITIL certified, and took the long way to InfoSec. She actively shares her passion for security online as a speaker, volunteers at conferences, and champions diversity as a founding member of The Diana Initiative.

If there is one myth that you could debunk in cybersecurity, what would it be?

That hackers are the “bad guys.” Attackers are the problem—as are ignorance, complacency, and convenience. Hackers are problem-solvers, troubleshooters, and among the best people I know. Their curiosity and determination have often been misunderstood, fabricating a detrimental stereotype. In this community of learning and mentoring, hackers share what they know and encourage others to try, creating a welcoming space for many people who don’t feel they belong anywhere. They dare to probe and poke holes in digital frameworks, to ask the questions big corporations want ignored, and to uncover the truth about how secure we really are.

What is one of the biggest ...