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Michael Howard on Secure by Design vs Secure by Default

48 min • 27 augusti 2024

Michael Howard, Senior Director at Microsoft joins Nic Fillingham on this week's episode of The BlueHat Podcast. Michael shares his journey at Microsoft, starting from his early days in New Zealand as part of a small team of ten. He discusses his extensive career, his contributions to cybersecurity, and his role in the development of essential security books like "Writing Secure Code" and "The Security Development Lifecycle." Michael reflects on the importance of fundamental security principles and how they remain relevant today. He also touches on his recent move within Microsoft to John Lambert's team, where he continues to focus on security culture and education. The conversation delves into the origins of the Blue Hat conference, Michael's experiences at the first event, and the ongoing significance of secure coding practices and mitigations.

In This Episode You Will Learn:

Critical aspects of secure software development and pivotal moments in Microsoft's security
The importance of using specific coding constructs and libraries to improve security
Findings on vulnerabilities that spurred significant security improvements in SQL Server

Some Questions We Ask:

How do you deploy security patches effectively while minimizing disruptions?
What coding constructs and compiler flags did you recommend for better security?
How did external researchers at Blue Hat conferences impact Microsoft's culture?