Nicole Perlroth, Cybersecurity Reporter at The New York Times, and author of This Is How They Tell Me The World Ends
One of the most coveted tools in a spy’s arsenal, a zero day has the power to silently spy on an iPhone, dismantle the safety controls at a chemical plant, alter an election, and shut down the electric grid. For decades — under cover of classification levels and non-disclosure agreements — the United States government became the world’s dominant hoarder of zero days. U.S. government agents paid top dollar — first thousands of dollars, and later millions — to hackers willing to sell their lock-picking code and their silence. Then the United States lost control of its hoard and the market. Now those zero days are in the hands of hostile nations and mercenaries who don’t care if your vote goes missing, your clean water is contaminated, or our nuclear plants melt down. Join leading cybersecurity journalist Nicole Perlroth as she takes us down the dark path that brought us where we are today.
Interviewed by: Bob Bragdon, SVP/Managing Director Worldwide, CSO, IDG Communications, Inc.