24. What Happens If Hackers Poison the Water? Interview with Lesley Carhart

We’ve seen the latest AFR headlines: “Spy chief warns hackers could cut power, poison water, crash banks.” But who do you call when those headlines become real life? 

In this episode, we’re joined by Lesley Carhart, Technical Director of Industrial Incident Response at Dragos. Lesley is one of a few people in the world who has the skillset to walk in and help provide digital forensic analysis when critical infrastructure (think power, water, and industrial systems) gets hacked. In this episode we unpack what “operational technology” really means and walk through some real-world impacts of what happens when it’s attacked. We also talk about what actually helps prevent these incidents, and what everyday people can do (yes, even outside of cyber) to reduce the risk.

It’s a big, fascinating, slightly terrifying episode, and we’re incredibly grateful to have Lesley join us to pull back the curtain on the incidents you never want to experience, but should understand. 

For more information about you can act secure online, visit https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/our-portfolios/cyber-security/strategy/act-now-stay-secure

Resources mentioned: 

Lesley on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lcarhart/?originalSubdomain=au

Lesleys blog and cyber security conference: https://tisiphone.net/author/hacks4pancakes/

GTC on Socials:

Follow the Girls Talk Cyber Instagram account for all your cyber tips and tricks: https://www.instagram.com/girlstalkcyber/?hl=en 

Join the Girls Talk Cyber Facebook community to share your cyber security stories and let us know how you’re feeling about the content covered in this episode: https://www.facebook.com/groups/828589538834261/