Our CEO Q&A with Eliza-May Austin proves that...well, she's not boring - let's put it that way.
You may have seen her posts on LinkedIn, so you already know this. But there’s a lot more to EMA than you might think, so what better time for a CEO Q&A with the woman herself?
Find out below about how th4ts3cur1ty.company came to be, observing an ill-advised phishing test…and a potential link to Danny DeVito!
If your cybersecurity company were a superhero, what would its superpowers be and why?
The Invisible Man. We made the mistake of choosing a company name that is hated by the Google algorithm and we also don’t discuss our customers publicly, meaning no logos on the website. We’ve inadvertently made ourselves a little invisible, but the upside is that we are trusted and we’re invited to work on some pretty interesting contracts; we just don’t get to brag about them.
What was the ‘lightbulb moment’ that made you say, “I need to start my own cybersecurity company?”
It was clear that a few meetings or workshops wouldn’t make a real difference, so I teamed up with Stephen Ridgway to create a security company that does things differently. Our goal was to challenge the status quo and address those systemic issues head-on. Now, in our sixth year and with a growing team, it’s evident that we’re on the right track.
What’s the most surprising or unexpected threat you’ve ever encountered in your career?
It’s crucial to understand the attackers – their motives, origins, organisational structures, and the level of professionalism they bring to their operations.
If you could have dinner with any famous hacker (ethical or otherwise), who would it be and what would you ask them?
What’s your favourite non-tech activity to unwind after a long day of fighting cyber threats?
What’s the funniest or most bizarre phishing attempt you’ve ever seen?
Bizarre, yes; funny no. A “professional” phishing company hired by one of our PocketSIEM customers sent out a phishing campaign about sexual harassment to the customer. It was advertised internally as a sexual harassment warning, but when people clicked on it it came up with this banner saying “oops – you failed the phishing test!”.
That probably really triggered some people at that customer and would have affected their reputation if staff members had posted that online. Imagine having experienced that situation and thinking your employer was taking it seriously, and then being hit with this email in the office. It was a nail in the coffin that ultimately lost them that contract. The customer took it really seriously – good on them.
How would you explain what you do to a five-year-old?
“We protect companies from hackers,
We help companies that have been hacked,
Ee-i-ee-i-oh!”
If your company’s journey were made into a movie, what would be the title and who would play you?
“Defenders”. It’d be an action movie and I’d be played by Danny DeVito, probably.
What’s your go-to “pump-up” song before a big presentation or tackling a major cyber threat?
Want more from Eliza and the team?
If you enjoyed out CEO Q&A, watch this space for more behind-the-scenes content from th4ts3cur1ty.company!
You can also follow Eliza over on LinkedIn.
