Episode #
16
Computer Forensic Services's Mark Lanterman on Bringing Justice Through Digital Forensics
Show Notes
In this week's episode of the Future of Cyber Risk podcast, David speaks to Mark Lanterman, Founder & CTO of Computer Forensic Services, a provider of electronic discovery, forensic analysis, litigation support, and advisory and consultation services. They discuss the role of digital forensics, especially in criminal cases where it can help bring justice. They also discuss how to prepare your organization for a cyber event, how forensics has changed in the era of cloud, what the future of cyber risk management will look like, and what advice new CISOs or CTOs should follow.
Topics discussed:
Mark's background in both computer science and in law enforcement, and how every day there’s a new mystery to solve at Computer Forensic Services, a digital forensics crime lab.
The difference between what eDiscovery and forensics can tell you, and why forensics answers the "how," "who," "when," and "why."
How forensics has changed in the cloud era, and why it's critical to log, log, log.
The story of a murder case that was solved by finding a deleted note on a seized computer.
Why preparing for a cyber event is like preparing for game day, and why it's better to fail in practice than when it really matters.
What the future of cyber risk management will look like, and how security will be integrated across an organization.
Advice for new CISOs or CTOs that include staying self-critical, always being mentally prepared for the worst, and the importance of great communication skills.
Quotes from Episode
#1.)
"A piece of advice to your listeners is, log and log and log. ... That helps us piece together the narrative of what actually happened. But then we're also seeing situations where logs are kept for three days. And that's not very helpful." (5:30)
#2.)
"eDiscovery tells you what's inside of a file cabinet. Forensics tells you who put it there, when did they put it there, where did that file come from, and when. ... eDiscovery answers the 'what' question. Forensic takes it a few steps further and answers the 'how,' 'who,' 'when,' and I think most importantly, the 'why.'" (15:43)
#3.)
"Think of a cyber event as game day. You need to pick your team. You need to practice with your team. You need to know who your team is. Have you drafted people for your team already? You need to be prepared with a game plan before game day." (17:45)
#4.)
"Cyber risk management is something that we will see integrated throughout an organization. And I think that as technology controls more of our physical world, that will only become more and more important. So I think that companies that don't will fall by the wayside." (30:15)
#5.)
"Always be mentally prepared for the worst. Most organizations that I have encountered focus so much on thinking that something bad won't happen, that no one would ever do this to us, that they're not prepared when it does happen." (31:46)