From doing ‘computer stuff’ to being a ‘modern day James Bond’

Ira Winkler has been called a “modern day James Bond,” a title he earned by performing espionage simulations where he physically and technically “broke into” some of the largest companies in the world.

Winkler, a former intelligence analyst with NSA, a social engineer, systems hacker, and scuba diver and author, told Cybereason Chief Security Officer Sam Curry during a CISO Stories podcast that he is passionate about security and trying to rise the tide.

Looking back at his career now, which transitioned to a security focus in the mid 1990s, Winkler said his time at NSA is what we'd call penetration testing today, "always on the offensive side." Then he got into crypt analysis - "in other words, breaking machine code."

Listen now to episode 20 of CISO Stories: So you want to be a cyber spy?

Winkler is chief information security officer at Skyline Technology Solutions and the author of “You can stop stupid.”