Dave Chronister – @bagomojo is co-founder and Managing Partner of Parameter Security, an ethical hacking firm. As a Certified Ethical Hacker and Certified Information Systems Security Professional, Chronister possesses deep security expertise in some of the most heavily regulated industries including financial services and healthcare. Specifically, Sarbanes Oxley (SOX), Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA), Payment Card Industries (PCI), and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

Cutting his teeth on technology at the age of 5, Chronister gained an instant attraction to the inner-workings of his computer. Before the age of 8, he wrote his first computer software program and by the time he was a teenager he ran one of St. Louis’ biggest networked bulletin board systems. It was at this time he experienced war dialing and first encountered the underground world of hacking.

During the course of his professional career, Chronister served as Architect for A.G Edwards’ electronic messaging system – the largest Exchange Server deployment at the time. At Cybersource, he was the technical liaison to the various credit card organizations, developing their payment card compliance standards. Additionally, working with numerous medical and dental practices, Chronister served as Technical Advisor helping these practices meet HIPAA compliance. Recently, he served as Chief Technology Officer for a $700 million dollar bank holding company for over 5 years prior to starting Parameter Security.

Chronister’s expertise has been featured on television’s CNN, Bloomberg TV, CNBC, Fox Business, ABC World News with Diane Sawyer, America Now with Leeza Gibbons, FOX 2 KTVI, KMOV Channel 4, KSDK News Channel 5 as well as several local radio stations. Also spotlighted in online and print publications such as FOX Business News, CNBC, CBS, Associated Press, CIO Magazine, Information Security Magazine, InfoWorld Magazine, Computerworld, Entrepreneur Magazine, Popular Science, American Banking Journal, BankNet 360, Bank News, Credit Union Tech Talk, The Kansas City Star, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, The Suburban Journal, St. Louis Business Journal, St. Louis Business Monthly and other publications. Plus, Chronister has written several articles for numerous industry publications. Chronister appears as a regular cybersecurity expert on Fox Business, CNBC, MSNBC, and CNN.

Split Personalities: The Psychology of Social Engineering

Social Engineering works because people are stupid. This is a phrase that is repeated as a statement of fact within the Information Security community. However, based on scientific research the opposite is true, we are all vulnerable because we are complex creatures. In this talk we will explore the exact reasons why Social Engineering works, techniques that can be used to exploit through social engineering, and ways to defend against it. By the end of the talk you will understand if you’re human, you’re vulnerable to social engineering.