Episode 56 - Cybersecurity Training, AI Governance & Modern Threats with Thomas McCarthy

And how are you finding in your trainings the level of education on folks, specifically as it relates to AI?

Yeah, you know, we just said this before we came on, Matt, that, you know, lots of countries are obviously anxious about the propaganda that you hear right now, the rhetoric around how not only the AI is going to steal all our jobs and make half the population redundant, but in 10 years time, it's going to wipe out all, you know, mankind.

There's reasons for concern, but I think the most important thing for me and what we're seeing is control or lack of control around compliance, around ethical use of AI tools, because everybody's trying to do things quicker, faster, more efficiently, not waste so much time.

So AI tools are making life a lot easier in the workplace.

But for us, the important thing is the education piece.

How do we make sure that our employees are using tools correctly? and ethically so that they don't damage the company's reputation, but more importantly,

the company's business.

We're beginning to see organizations embrace the requirement for knowledge around AI.

You met Richard Priest.

Richard's now delivering an AI governance workshop just to give more of an overview to the board about what they should be thinking about when their employees are being encouraged to use AI because it's the governance that will bring a lot of organizations down.

If you don't have control measures in place, Matt, God forbid, you know, you're leaving your workforce there to do things at their own pace with no control.

So it's being embraced, I have to admit, as I said to you just back from Tunisia a few weeks ago, fly off to Dubai.

Sounds a lot more flamboyant than it is.

You know what it's like, Matt, on a plane and off a plane.

Yes.

But yeah, you know, we're trying to do our part, but more importantly, learn from leaders.

It's really important.

And you've got to start with governance.

I think if you don't have governance, you have no control.

And that's what we're finding here in the States is the shadow AI is real.

I don't know how long it's going to take for organizations to realize that they don't have much of a choice, but they're going to have to figure out a way to put those controls in place in order to give their workforce the opportunity to leverage the technology that they know exists today, but do it in a manner that won't create a potential extinction level event for their organization.

Extinction at a level event, you know, that was the term from movies,

Matt,

wasn't it? Yeah, it was.

And the amount of people that actually make jokes to me now about the Terminator movies in the 80s with Arnold Schwarzenegger, you know, Skynet was going to wipe out all mankind.

And how are you finding in your trainings the level of education on folks, specifically as it relates to AI?

Yeah, you know, we just said this before we came on, Matt, that, you know, lots of countries are obviously anxious about the propaganda that you hear right now, the rhetoric around how not only the AI is going to steal all our jobs and make half the population redundant, but in 10 years time, it's going to wipe out all, you know, mankind.

There's reasons for concern, but I think the most important thing for me and what we're seeing is control or lack of control around compliance, around ethical use of AI tools, because everybody's trying to do things quicker, faster, more efficiently, not waste so much time.

So AI tools are making life a lot easier in the workplace.

But for us, the important thing is the education piece.

How do we make sure that our employees are using tools correctly? and ethically so that they don't damage the company's reputation, but more importantly,

the company's business.

We're beginning to see organizations embrace the requirement for knowledge around AI.

You met Richard Priest.

Richard's now delivering an AI governance workshop just to give more of an overview to the board about what they should be thinking about when their employees are being encouraged to use AI because it's the governance that will bring a lot of organizations down.

If you don't have control measures in place, Matt, God forbid, you know, you're leaving your workforce there to do things at their own pace with no control.

So it's being embraced, I have to admit, as I said to you just back from Tunisia a few weeks ago, fly off to Dubai.

Sounds a lot more flamboyant than it is.

You know what it's like, Matt, on a plane and off a plane.

Yes.

But yeah, you know, we're trying to do our part, but more importantly, learn from leaders.

It's really important.

And you've got to start with governance.

I think if you don't have governance, you have no control.

And that's what we're finding here in the States is the shadow AI is real.

I don't know how long it's going to take for organizations to realize that they don't have much of a choice, but they're going to have to figure out a way to put those controls in place in order to give their workforce the opportunity to leverage the technology that they know exists today, but do it in a manner that won't create a potential extinction level event for their organization.

Extinction at a level event, you know, that was the term from movies,

Matt,

wasn't it? Yeah, it was.

And the amount of people that actually make jokes to me now about the Terminator movies in the 80s with Arnold Schwarzenegger, you know, Skynet was going to wipe out all mankind.