ISF Podcast2 Dec 2025

S36 Ep13: Steve Durbin - Preparing for AI-Generated Cyber Intrusions

In the second part of his interview with journalist Nick Witchell, Steve and Nick delve into the world of AI and cyber. Steve shares his thoughts on autonomous cyber defense and argues that major actors like the ISF, large private enterprises, and the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre, must lead the way and support small and medium-sized businesses in keeping pace with technological advancements. The two also discuss the future of AI, cautioning that we aren’t as prepared as we need to be…

Key Takeaways:

Small and medium-sized businesses must receive support to stay up-to-date with new technologies.
As more automation is introduced into business operations, understanding of one’s crown jewels and how to protect them is increasingly important.
AI is advancing rapidly with evermore funding, and globally society is not preparing as well as it needs to for what’s to come.

Tune in to hear more about:

Steve’s view on autonomous cyber defense (00:55)
The National Cyber Security Centre and its role in the cyber resilience of UK businesses (3:36)
How AI will impact jobs in cyber (7:55)

Standout Quotes:

“You'll never get me going into an autonomous car. I just won't do it. And people will say, ‘Yes, they're being looked after by some bloke in a tower somewhere who's watching it.” I'm not buying it. I've been working in technology for far too long to know that it is fallible. And so I think we have to really move toward much more transparency in our understanding of where the AI tool is active, the data that it's using, the decisions it's making.” - Steve Durbin
“We are looking for large private enterprise to be working collaboratively with people like the NCSC, with people like the ISF, to really help some of these smaller organizations that don't have the luxury or resources available to them to keep a pace with [technology].” - Steve Durbin
“If you go back to the internet, we didn't do a good enough job of trying to forecast the way in which the internet was going to be used. We put it out there and we said, ‘Let everybody use it and let's see where it goes.” We are doing, I fear, a similar kind of thing with AI.” - Steve Durbin

Read the transcript of this episode
Subscribe to the ISF Podcast wherever you listen to podcasts
Connect with us on LinkedIn and Twitter

From the Information Security Forum, the leading authority on cyber, information security, and risk management.

Det här avsnittet är hämtat från ett öppet RSS-flöde och publiceras inte av Podme. Det kan innehålla reklam.

Avsnitt(355)

355: Eric O'Neill – Hackers Don't Break In, They Log In: Trust as the New Perimeter

Today, Steve is joined by former FBI agent Eric O’Neill. Eric is a cyber security expert and author, but he’s probably most well-known as the man who brought down Peter Hanssen, a Russian spy who beca...

1 Sep 31min

354: SUMMER LISTENING: Emerging Threats for 2026

Today, Steve looks toward the horizon, at the threats and challenges that enterprises and business leaders will face in 2026 and beyond. He also gives advice on how everyone, from the board to the pra...

25 Aug 28min

353: SUMMER LISTENING: Rest After Stress: The Psychology of High Performance

Today, Steve speaks with Lauren Farina, psychotherapist and founder of Invited Psychotherapy & Coaching. Lauren and Steve discuss how wellness is becoming a bigger part of the workplace and how we can...

18 Aug 26min

352: SUMMER LISTENING: Geoff White – Ransomware Is a Business and It's Competing Against You

In today’s episode, we welcome another ISF veteran: journalist Geoff White. The last time Geoff was a guest on the podcast, it was 2024 and he had just released a book about how the tech industry laun...

11 Aug 28min

351: SUMMER LISTENING: Steve Durbin – How Quantum and Geopolitics Are Redefining Resilience

Today, Steve returns to Business Matters with Juliette Foster. In this conversation, Steve recaps 2025 in cyber and shares what he sees as the biggest risks heading into 2026. The two also discuss res...

4 Aug 27min

350: SUMMER LISTENING: Alex Bovee – Identity in the Age of Agentic AI

In this episode, Steve speaks with Alex Bovee, co-founder and CEO of C1, a technology company focused on identity security online. Steve and Alex discuss why identity still often is an afterthought wh...

28 Juli 23min

349: Steve Durbin – When Governments Shift: Reimagining UK Cyber Strategy and Business Resilience

Today, Steve returns to Business Matters with Juliette Foster. The United Kingdom has a new Prime Minister: Andy Burnham, and Steve speaks with Juliette from a cyber and business perspective about wha...

21 Juli 29min