Mothers Against Cyber Crime: Tackling Cyber Threats at Home

Intro  00:01

Welcome to the She Said Privacy He Said Security podcast. Like any good marriage, we will debate, evaluate and sometimes quarrel about how privacy and security impact business in the 21st century.

 

Jodi Daniels  00:21

Hi, Jodi Daniels here. I’m the founder and CEO of Red Clover Advisors, a certified women’s privacy consultancy. I’m a privacy consultant and certified information privacy professional providing practical privacy advice to overwhelmed companies.

 

Justin Daniels  00:37

Hello, I am Justin Daniels. I am a shareholder and corporate M&A and tech transaction lawyer at the law firm Baker Donelson. Advising companies in the deployment and scaling of technology. Since data is critical to every transaction, I help clients make informed business decisions while managing data privacy and cybersecurity risk. And when needed, I lead the legal cyber data breach Response Brigade.

 

Jodi Daniels  01:01

This episode is brought to you by Red Clover Advisors. We help companies to comply with data privacy laws and establish customer trust so that they can grow and nurture integrity. Stop. I’m going to go into giggles. Red Clover Advisors works with companies in a variety of fields, including technology, e-commerce, professional services, and digital media. In short, we use data privacy to transform the way companies do business together. We’re creating a future where there’s greater trust between companies and consumers. To learn more and to check out our best selling book Data Reimagined Building Trust One Byte at a Time, visit RedCloveradvisors.com. It was so hard to get through without giggling. See, when you do these little smirky things that make me laugh, I go into a laughing spree. Why are you doing that to me?

 

Justin Daniels  01:52

It’s my snarky attempts to renegotiate my co-host contract that’s been going on for years, listeners. And guess what I’ve got? Guess. Yep.

 

Jodi Daniels  02:02

Four years and we are into year five. So. And we have another author today.

 

Justin Daniels  02:09

Yes we do.

 

Jodi Daniels  02:10

This will be fun. Okay. We have Allie Hunter, who is the author of Mothers Against Cyber Crime. Allie is a cyber security awareness advocate, advisory board member at Savvy Cyber Kids, and mother with a background in psychology, marketing, and behavioral science. She empowers parents to protect their families online. Her work blends storytelling with practical insights, making cyber safely accessible to everyone. Allie, welcome to the show.

 

Allie Hunter  02:41

Thank you so much for having me. I’m honored.

 

Jodi Daniels  02:44

We love doing these types of shows, and we firmly believe it is so important for people to understand really what these risks are online. And we are really grateful that you are here today.

 

Allie Hunter  02:56

Well, thank you.

 

Justin Daniels  02:59

Well, Allie, let’s start from the beginning. Tell us a little bit about your career journey to where you’re at today.

 

Allie Hunter  03:07

So I began my career with a focus on marketing, and then I really got into the web design and graphic design aspect of it. So then I went back to school for that. Then I really started focusing on the behavioral aspects from marketing. I was constantly questioning why people think the way they do. What motivates them? Things like that. So then I went back to school again for psychology, and I started a career as a neurodevelopmental teacher. ABA therapy for kids with autism and other developmental disabilities. I then got pregnant and really unfortunate circumstances led me to becoming a single mother. I then completely decided to switch up my career so that I could work from home with more flexibility, more stability. I  anonymously commented in one of the local Mom Facebook groups. I asked if anyone had any ideas for my specific situation that I was going through, and how I could switch careers. One woman commented about the Women in Technology’s Single Mothers program and I thought, oh, this sounds interesting. What is this? So I did some research on it, and I found out that the application to join was due in two days. So I hustled really hard. I wrote my essays, I received my letter of recommendations, and I finished everything. Within those 48 hours, I was very determined. I went through a couple of interviews and was accepted, and thus my career in cybersecurity started. So the Single Mothers program was completely life changing. We, the single mothers group, we invested 500 hours within over 20 weeks of education and professional development. So we were doing cybersecurity classes, infosec classes, on top of career workshops to really learn both the skill set and the mindset of cybersecurity professionals, along with being a single mother. So I’ve built relationships with women of like mind who are extraordinary, determined, hardworking, loyal. They can run circles around some other professionals that I’ve met just from everything that we manage. You know, we have skills that a lot of people have never even thought about, like managing multiple jobs, getting our kids to and from activities, feeding them. I mean, the resourcefulness and the creativity of their thinking is incomparable. The survival mode really puts us all in overcompensation mode. I like to call it, where we just learned some really impressive skills. And you know, that Single Mothers Program’s mission is to get us from the survival mode to thriving. Anyways, I could go on and on about how great that program is and how amazing it was to be surrounded by such talent and ambition, and it just really resonated with me and got me to where I am today. So during one of the classes, I met a professor, you know, Ben Halpert, the founder of Savvy Cyber Kids. He just so happened to mention a Netflix series called Mr. Robot. And me being new in the field, I really just wanted to absorb as much real life exposure to tech as I could. And I thought this series was perfect for that. I also wanted to network, of course, so I reached out to him on LinkedIn. I thanked him for the recommendation. He ended up looking at my LinkedIn background. I had all my, you know, marketing behavioral career information on that, and he found it impressive enough to ask me to do some side work for savvy cyber kids, mainly with marketing. And then he was going to teach me more about the cyber security along the way. Cyber security awareness specifically. He’s taught me so much about keeping families safe and information security, and I’m just very thankful for him. So shoutout to Ben during the education program, the single mothers program that I was in. I also reached out to every professor I attended, any free seminar that I could. I attended meetings with CISOs or any experts in the field that would take the time to chat with me and a few of those mentors mentioned that while we’re waiting to gain experience in the field and to finish our education paths, that we should broadcast what we learn in a fun, engaging way, like a blog or something. And you know, with my background in marketing and graphic design, I kind of went overboard. And thus I created my book.

 

Jodi Daniels  08:19

Well, so, Allie, let’s talk a little bit about the book and help us understand. It’s called Mothers Against Cyber Crime and sounds like that was a big project as part of what prompted the book. So tell us a little bit about your choice for focusing on Mothers Against Cyber Crime. What is it? What is it about? What can we learn?

 

Allie Hunter  08:42

The inspiration behind Mothers Against Cyber Crime? It came from the real scenarios that I’ve encountered in my cybersecurity work. Many of these situations involved young families blindsided by all of the digital threats they didn’t even know existed, myself included. I had a little stalking incident in my early 20s, and then within the past year, a dear friend of mine, she had her Instagram hacked. Her precious babies photos and intimate email conversations were exposed. Not only did she fear having her family visible to a stranger, her bank account was also accessed almost immediately after the hacking incident. So somehow they came from Instagram to the bank, which I’m assuming, you know, same passwords which I dive into later. But. And then another friend of mine, he was mourning the loss of his spouse when a scam artist tried stealing credit card information with a fake link sent to his family and friends through Facebook regarding the memorial service. It was asking for donations. Completely fake. And unfortunately, the list of these attacks just go on and on and on, as you know. So parents today are balancing so much work, family, the ever evolving challenges of keeping kids safe. And I really wanted to create something that would not only educate, but resonate with them as well. So this book combines. It combines real life, sometimes unsettling stories with — very unsettling. There’s trigger warnings throughout the book heads up with practical advice that goes beyond just the how and into the why of cybersecurity. My goal is to make these complex concepts accessible so that parents can feel more confident in protecting their kids without necessarily needing a tech background. Because it’s a lot. It took a lot of scary stories and insights to bring this project to life, and there’s more on the horizon in the future. I’m planning an audio version and possibly a workbook in a more user friendly format. Something along the lines of, you know, the For Dummies series, kind of something like that. So I can have pictures and graphics of, you know, this is exactly how you do this, A, B, C you don’t have to be a tech expert. Let’s knock this out. Keep our kids safe. And one crucial aspect of my approach is the Hunter method that I created. It’s a cybersecurity awareness training method, and it focuses on making employees well. In this context, mothers are more aware of potential threats and teaching them how to identify and respond to these threats effectively. So it incorporates these real world scenarios, the fabricated stories, the real world scenarios, and then the tips into interactive training sessions.

 

Jodi Daniels  12:03

Really, really interesting. Oh, I’m sorry I didn’t. I was going to just say, I think there’s the ability to have things that are interactive is really interesting, helpful. And I think that’s how people start to learn. It starts to sink in when you really connect reading and doing.

 

Allie Hunter  12:21

Yes, I really wanted to create these scary stories so the moms can put themselves in the shoes, because if you feel like it’s happening to you, you’re more able to retain the information. You know, you’re really looking forward to learning more about it.

 

Justin Daniels  12:39

So in that vein, can you share with us from your book what are the big risks out there that you think parents are missing?

 

Allie Hunter  12:53

There’s a lot. But parents often overlook threats posed by smart devices, gaming networks, and even social media friends trends that can make kids vulnerable to cyber criminals. So internet enabled toys and home devices, for instance, can be exploited for data breaches or even physical surveillance if left unsecured. There’s a story in my book about a baby monitor being hacked. That’s all I’ll say. Online gaming also poses unique risks, with features like live chat and in-game purchases, creating openings for more scams and inappropriate interactions. The gaming world is just filled with pedophiles, and there are a few books or a few chapters in my book regarding the type of stories that are actually happening. I mean, the news articles are right there. So and then of course, the rise of financial tech for kids like the prepaid cards and kid friendly banking apps. That just introduces another layer as kids can be targeted for social engineering scams and just other scams along those lines.

 

Justin Daniels  14:12

So in particular about parents, what advice might you give to parents if their son or daughter is clamoring for these apps like WhatsApp? And what might be some of the hidden risks that parents should be aware of, and how they figure out what apps to let their kids have on their phone.

 

Allie Hunter  14:32

So open communication. Definitely. And first, you know, we need to secure all of the devices updating passwords, enabling two factor authentication. Make sure you have open communication with your kids so that they feel comfortable discussing their online experiences. And that way, you’re already ahead of seeing any of the red flags that you need to notice. Simple actions like reviewing the privacy settings of those apps that they’re asking for, reviewing them together, and practicing, you know, recognizing suspicious links, suspicious people that they might be chatting to. It can go a long way in building their digital resilience.

 

Jodi Daniels  15:22

Now, like companies, the cyber threats continue to change all the time. And for parents, that’s tricky to try and keep up with what it is. That is the latest threat today. How can parents continue their learning and knowledge and stay in tune with all these different threats?

 

Allie Hunter  15:46

That is very true. Cyber threats are continually evolving, with new tactics and tools surfacing frequently. One of the best ways to stay updated is by, in my opinion, subscribing to a trusted cybersecurity blog. So, for example, as you know, at Savvy Cyber Kids, we have the Cyber Ethics News Feed in a weekly newsletter that are all free. And those are specific news stories regarding parents and kids. And then I also started a monthly newsletter. It has a few tips on, you know, keeping your kids safe, cyber cyber safe. Sorry. But mine I also include other things like for women, mothers, parents in tech. I include a few fun brain breaks, you could call it like navigating a healthier work life balance. Food inspiration. The latest tech trends to keep up with. And then I also include a little fun horoscope and trivia questions, just like old school newspapers, but definitely stay up to date with some trusted sources.

 

Jodi Daniels  17:02

I will give another plug for Savvy Cyber Kids. There is an amazing plethora of information and if you are a parent listening to this and you have not signed up to get the weekly news feed or check out any of the other materials, we highly encourage you to do so. And then also just offer to talk to your school. So for any parents listening, encourage talking to your school and understand what apps they are using and be able to try and manage any of the settings on those as well.

 

Allie Hunter  17:33

Yeah, and to add on to that, you can feel free to message savvy cyber kids. You can message me Allie Hunter, I will give you guys all of my contact information, because sometimes you just have a random question and you don’t have enough time to, you know, go through the whole website. Or maybe Google’s confusing. Just feel free to reach out to us. We’re here to help you.

 

Jodi Daniels  17:56

Thank you.

 

Justin Daniels  18:01

That’s interesting because I guess, Allie, I’d love to get your thoughts on an emerging issue. And that’s the one around deepfakes. And kids are very savvy when it comes to technology. And so what do we do as parents, particularly if you have a daughter where now people can make deepfakes that put people’s faces on bodies that aren’t there and show people in really adverse lights. I feel a lot of times parents, you know, want their kids to have a phone because it’s a safety feature, but they are really unaware, particularly in this case, about how this evolving threat could really damage a young person’s reputation, say, in high school or whatnot, permanently.

 

Allie Hunter  18:51

There’s also a chapter in my book regarding that. There’s two stories about it because, yes, it’s an emerging trend that’s happening and kids are getting cyber bullied about it. You know, they’ll take the faces of those kids and put it on nude images. And who’s to believe if they’re real or not? So again, I think open communication with your kids, figuring out exactly what’s happening, you know, talking to educators. And my biggest thing is to make everything private. If you don’t know anybody, don’t accept them as a friend because they’re more likely to use your image to create a deepfake, especially for the high school kids.

 

Jodi Daniels  19:44

So, Allie, I was going to ask if you had to think about one tip that you would give people, and you kind of just gave a hint about privates. So maybe that’s going to still be your tip, but I’ll give you another option just in case. We always ask everyone what is their favorite privacy tip?

 

Allie Hunter  20:00

My favorite privacy tip is it’s actually a quote. Okay. So think of your personal information like a Lamborghini. It’s exclusive, it’s high value. And it’s meant for only a select few. Just like you wouldn’t hand over the keys to that luxury car to just anyone. Your data and online presence deserves the same level of protection because let’s face it, you and your family are priceless. Priceless. So again, set your socials to private and only accept connections with people who you know that you know that they’re sending you a connection request. Now, unless you’re a public figure or trying to be a public figure, I would say, then accept those. But if you’re going to post your children, make sure you cover their faces with stickers. You can use a simple app like Canva or something. Just cover them. Don’t ever post what you’re about to do. Don’t say I’m going on a trip to Hilton Head Island. I  would say it’s okay to post after the fact. Yeah, those are my big tips. And of course, use multi-factor authentication for all of your logins for socials.

 

Jodi Daniels  21:17

Good tips.

 

Justin Daniels  21:20

Well, as a mom, Jodi, what would be your tip?

 

Jodi Daniels  21:25

I think it’s probably as we’re going through this now, it’s talking about what information is okay to share. What information is not okay to share. And our younger daughter listens all the time. And so she’s so familiar with data breach and privacy and limiting data and so then we’ll be somewhere where they really need the information, like at a doctor’s office. And they really need to know something. Mom, why are you sharing that? Well, because this is an okay scenario and why it’s okay to share this amount of information, but over here it’s not. So I like the idea of communication, but really from an education standpoint, because there’s only so much blocking. I mean, there’s blocking and tackling that I think is important. But at some point they’re going to be on their own. And trying to teach them for me is a very important piece, because I think, I mean, if you only gave me like one, I mean, I got 25, but.

 

Justin Daniels  22:25

I guess one of the things I’m taking away from our conversation with Allie is about this open communication. We have other instances where we try to have open communication and, well, then.

 

Jodi Daniels  22:39

They don’t get what they want.

 

Justin Daniels  22:40

It’s very challenging.

 

Jodi Daniels  22:42

Well, that’s why you have to keep trying multiple angles. Okay.

 

Justin Daniels  22:47

I just wanted to bring up the fact, Allie, that your open communication is right on. But sometimes when the intended recipient is very close-minded and doesn’t want to listen to what you have to say, that can be a challenge because kids are always pushing boundaries.

 

Allie Hunter  23:03

That is very true. Well, with in regards. So this might be a little off topic, but for example, let’s say, you know, your daughter was getting cyber bullied and she didn’t want to talk to you about it. They have free resources like the 988 number. It’s free and they’re trained counselors.

And you can just kind of maybe show them it like here. If you need to talk to someone, talk to someone about it. I mean, it’s not necessarily with educating about privacy, but it is another person that they can talk to about what they’re going through from being cyber bullied or something like that.

 

Justin Daniels  23:45

Well, thank you for that, Allie. And when you’re not writing books and being all things cybersecurity, what do you like to do for fun?

 

Allie Hunter  23:58

Not a lot of time for that, but I do really love the gym. And then I love family time. And I recently just started cold plunges. You do like a 15-minute meditation, a 15-minute sauna, and then you get in the cold plunge for three minutes. And I love it. Love the effects. But I also still love researching about the cyber psychology. It’s that new concept that’s out, which, you know, that’s how I developed the Hunter method that I was talking about. So actually, in my extra fun time, I presented about that method at Bsides in Atlanta. I just presented at Hacker Halted. So if any companies would like to bring me in to do their cybersecurity awareness training method for their employees, or just to have me speak at an event about it, that would also be during my fun time.

 

Jodi Daniels  24:57

Well, Allie, we appreciate you coming and sharing more about Mothers Against Cyber Crime. Anyone listening, please head on over to Amazon. You can grab a copy there. And we do really highly encourage you to visit Savvy Cyber Kids. Sign up for the News Feed, stay in the know and in tune with what is happening.

 

Allie Hunter  25:18

But thank you guys so much for having me. Thank you.

 

Outro  25:27

Thanks for listening to the She Said Privacy He Said Security podcast. If you haven’t already, be sure to click subscribe to get future episodes and check us out on LinkedIn. See you next time!