đ Welcome to Hack Dissection, where we pull back the curtain on cybersecurity, ethical hacking, and the digital threats shaping our world. Hosted by Mike Lisi, founder of Maltek Solutions and an expert in Hacking For Good, this podcast takes you behind the scenes of real-world cyber attacks, penetration testing, and security strategies that keep businesses and individuals safe. đť What Youâll Get in Every Episode: â Deep dives into ethical hacking and cybersecurity trends â Breakdowns of real cyber threatsâhow they happen & how to stop them â Insider stories from security professionals, red teamers, and industry experts â Practical tips to strengthen your security and protect your data đ˘ Subscribe & Stay Ahead of Cyber Threats! If you're a business owner, IT professional, or just someone who wants to understand cybersecurity without the jargon, youâre in the right place.
Host Mike Lisi interviews Donna Grindle, CEO of Kardon and host of Help Me With HIPAA, exploring how healthcare cybersecurity risks impact real people beyond just regulatory compliance.
28 Aug 2026TRANSCRIPT
Hacking for Good: Inside DEF CON 2026 with Mike Lisi & Matt Masur
Mike Lisi and Matt Masur explore the "Hacking for Good" ethos and unique community at DEF CON 2026, revealing how offensive security skills build better defenses.
24 Jul 2026TRANSCRIPT
Episode 0x14: Chain of Custody
Digital forensics expert Tony Martino shares with host Mike Lisi how evolving technology and data challenges shape modern investigations and proactive cybersecurity.
8 May 2026TRANSCRIPT
Episode 0x13: The Needle
Host Mike Lisi interviews NRECA's Wayne Koback about the unique cybersecurity challenges and collaborative solutions for electric cooperatives and rural utilities.
3 Apr 2026
Episode 0x12: Try Harder
In Episode 12 of Hack Dissection, Mike Lisi sits down with longtime friend and respected security educator Phillip Wylie â Chief Security Evangelist and Senior Consultant at Suzu Labs, and host of the Simply Offensive and The Phillip Wylie Show podcasts. Together, they look back on their early days pursuing the OSCP, discuss how offensive security has evolved over the last decade, and break down the changing realities of penetration testing in todayâs environment.
Phillip shares stories from the field, including a memorable web app penetration test involving SQL injection, weak credential practices, and the all-too-common misuse of risk acceptance. The conversation also explores the growing importance of web app testing, IoT attack paths, continuous remediation, and why foundational skills like networking, operating systems, and scripting still matter for anyone serious about building a career in cybersecurity.
They also dig into mentorship, community involvement, conference speaking, and the future of the industry â from AI as a force multiplier to the value of staying adaptable in a field that never stops changing. Whether youâre an experienced practitioner or just breaking into offensive security, this episode is packed with practical insight, career wisdom, and real-world perspective from one of the communityâs most generous voices.
9 Mar 2026TRANSCRIPT
Episode 0x11
Host Mike Lisi and guest Graham OâDonnell discuss the evolving landscape of penetration testing, compliance pressures, and practical security validation in this insightful interview.
23 Jan 2026TRANSCRIPT
Episode 0x10: Breaking In Without Breaking Down
In this episode of Hack Dissection, Mike Lisi sits down with Josh Cutting, a young software engineer who did what many cybersecurity students struggle to do â land a job immediately after graduating.
Josh shares his journey from learning to code as a kid and studying at SUNY Poly to completing multiple internships, earning his masterâs degree, and transitioning seamlessly into the workforce. Together, Mike and Josh unpack what actually matters when trying to break into cybersecurity today â and what doesnât.
This conversation dives deep into:
Why internships matter more than credentials alone
The mindset shift students need to succeed in cybersecurity
Learning outside the classroom through labs, CTFs, hackathons, and home labs
How employers really evaluate candidates during interviews
Why passion, curiosity, and adaptability beat âchecking boxesâ
The importance of mentorship, networking, and soft skills in technical careers
Whether youâre a student trying to land your first role, a career-changer navigating cybersecurity, or a hiring manager looking for motivated talent, this episode offers practical insights from someone whoâs been through the process recently â and successfully.
If youâve ever asked, âWhat does it really take to get hired in cybersecurity?â â this episode breaks it down.
8 Dec 2025TRANSCRIPT
Episode 0x9:
In Episode 0x9 of Hack Dissection, host Mike Lisi flips the perspective from offense to defense with guest Cody Spooner, Principal Sales Engineer at Corelight.
While Mike spends his days breaking into networks, Cody helps organizations defend them. Together they unpack how visibility, monitoring, and mindset intersect in modern cybersecurity â from the SOC Triad (SIEM, EDR, NDR) to the realities of MDR services, threat hunting, and alert fatigue.
They dig into:
Why companies think theyâre protected but still miss every alert
How to turn red-team findings into real defensive improvements
What threat hunting actually means (and why itâs not just a buzzword)
Lessons from ransomware incidents and tabletop exercises
How small businesses can build effective defenses without enterprise budgets
If youâve ever wondered what happens after the pen testers pack up, this conversation connects the offensive and defensive sides of the same fight â and shows how better collaboration can close the gap.
31 Oct 2025TRANSCRIPT
Episode 0x8:
In this episode of Hack Dissection, host Mike Lisi welcomes back Graham OâDonnell, Penetration Tester at Maltek Solutions, to pull back the curtain on what really happens during external and internal network assessments.
From OSINT and subdomain enumeration to Nmap quirks and the chaos of inconsistent vulnerability data, Graham shares his raw, unfiltered process for finding weaknesses in the wild â plus the unexpected human side of hacking when tests get a little too real.
Mike and Graham also discuss:
Automating and optimizing pen testing workflows
Credential reuse and why third-party breaches still matter
The ethics of exploring live environments
What it feels like to uncover personal data during an engagement
Whether youâre a cybersecurity pro or just curious how ethical hackers think, this conversation offers a rare, behind-the-scenes look at the craft, the chaos, and the conscience of penetration testing.
29 Sept 2025
Episode 0x7: Invisible Architectures
In this episode of Hack Dissection, host Mike Lisi sits down with Brandon Finton, MS, CISSP, CISM, President of Orion Secure, to unpack the evolving landscape of cybersecurity for businesses. From the early days of Cyber Defense Institute to the launch of Orion Secure, Brandon shares his journey and the shift from training to professional services. Together, Mike and Brandon dive into: đ Why Written Information Security Policies (WISP) are the foundation of any program đĄ The difference between compliance reviews and real risk assessments đŠâď¸ Why no oneânot even doctors, lawyers, or CEOsâshould get a pass on MFA đ Governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) as living documents đ¤ How AI and chatbots are reshaping securityâand the risks of giving them too much authority â ď¸ Real-world stories from penetration tests, ransomware cases, and phishing assessments Whether youâre a small business owner, IT leader, or simply curious about the state of cybersecurity, this episode sheds light on the challenges organizations faceâand the practical steps they can take to strengthen their defenses.
15 Aug 2025TRANSCRIPT
Hack Dissection 0x6
Cyber operations expert Paul Marco and host Mike Lisi dissect the critical role of tabletop exercises in cybersecurity preparedness, revealing common organizational failures and essential strategies for effective crisis response.
14 Jul 2025TRANSCRIPT
Episode 0x5: Model Behavior
Hosts Mike Lisi and Graham O'Donnell interview red teamer Wesley Thurner about AI exploitation, red team tactics, and CTF competitions, offering insights into ethical hacking's evolving landscape.
13 Jun 2025
Episode 0x4: Cascading Effects
Ethical hacker Graham OâDonnell recounts a K-12 school district penetration test that exposes how a single unpatched endpoint can lead to full domain compromise, revealing infrastructure fragility in an interview with Mike Lisi.
14 May 2025
Episode 0x3: The Threshold of Intent
Host Mike Lisi interviews penetration tester Graham O'Donnell about the mindset and methods of physical security testing, revealing how to bypass overlooked vulnerabilities.
23 Apr 2025
Episode 0x1: Unauthorized Access
Mike Lisi, founder of Maltek Solutions, reveals hidden cybersecurity threats and common business mistakes in this interview about unauthorized access.
23 Apr 2025
Episode 0x2: Code As Written, Not As Intended
Ethical hacker Allan Cecil explores how unchangeable code in tool-assisted speedruns reveals unexpected behavior, offering insights into cybersecurity and system flaws in this interview.
Inside a recent episode
Episode 0x15: People, Not Records
Published 25 Sept 2026 ¡ Transcript excerpt
[âŚ] Businesses have closed because they weren't prepared. If they had just followed even the basics, they would have been prepared for a ransomware attack or any of those things. Had they just followed those, then they would have been able to recover, and there are cases where they weren't able to recover simply because they weren't following them. The financial impact can be massive. And I've seen problems with following it causing the end to potential mergers and purchases. Many, many times I have been called in to help work out how bad is it or the merger goes ahead, but then the first focus is let's clean this up. [âŚ]
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