Lost In Cyberia
Cybersecurity doesn't have to be boring or a tick-box exercise. Annie-Mei Forster and Anika Guenov sit down with the people shaping the world of cyber: founders, researchers, and the occasional DEFCON after-party regular for honest, jargon-free conversations about what's actually going on in the industry. Because behind every threat, tool, and policy, there's a human story worth telling.
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Lost In Cyberia
Ep. 33 Why The Same 3% of People Keep Getting Phished with Dr Matthew Canham
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Why do people click on phishing links? Is it due to lack of awareness training? Is it lack of interest in securing their organisation? And what happens when AI agents, cognitive warfare, and weaponised ambiguity enter the picture?
We chat with Dr. Matt Canham who is the director of the Cognitive Security Institute, former cybercrime investigator with the U.S. Department of Justice, and one of the leading voices in behavioural cybersecurity.
Dr. Canham shares his research on 'repeat clickers'. This is the small percentage of users (around 3–5%) responsible for nearly half of all simulated phishing incidents. Crucially, it's not ignorance. These people know the policies. So what's actually going wrong, and how do we fix it? The answer involves training the brain's fast, automatic responses rather than relying on conscious decision-making.
The conversation then expands into the territory of AI agents as a new attack surface, the emerging field of neurosecurity, and cognitive warfare. If you're not sure what cognitive warfare is we explain how it's the disruption of decision-making as a strategic weapon. Dr. Canham also introduces the concept of ASID attacks, which exploit narrative and ambiguity rather than software vulnerabilities.
Plus, details on the first-ever Cognitive Security Conference, coming to Las Vegas this August.
Cognitive Security Institute:
https://www.cognitivesecurityinstitute.org/
Cognitive Security Institute Conference tickets:
https://www.cognitivesecurityinstitute.org/cognitive-security-conference
Find us on Instagram, YouTube or LinkedIn @thecybersecuritygals