Darknet Diaries

Phrack is legendary. It is the oldest, and arguably the most prestigious, underground hacking magazine in the world. It started in 1985 and is still running today. In this episode we interview the Phrack staff to hear some stories about what it’s like running a hacker magazine for 40 years. <a href="https://phrack.org/">phrack.org</a> Sponsors Support for this show comes from <a href="https://www.threatlocker.com/">ThreatLocker®</a>. ThreatLocker® is a Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform that strengthens your infrastructure from the ground up. With ThreatLocker® Allowlisting and Ringfencing™, you gain a more secure approach to blocking exploits of known and unknown vulnerabilities. ThreatLocker® provides Zero Trust control at the kernel level that enables you to allow everything you need and block everything else, including ransomware! Learn more at <a href="https://www.threatlocker.com/">www.threatlocker.com</a>. Support for this show comes from <a href="https://drata.com/darknetdiaries">Drata</a>. Drata is the trust management platform that uses AI-driven automation to modernize governance, risk, and compliance, helping thousands of businesses stay audit-ready and scale securely. Learn more at <a href="https://drata.com/darknetdiaries">drata.com/darknetdiaries</a>. This episode is sponsored by <a href="https://www.meter.com/">Meter</a>, the company building networks from the ground up. Meter delivers a complete networking stack - wired, wireless, and cellular - in one solution that’s built for performance and scale. Alongside their partners, Meter designs the hardware, writes the firmware, builds the software, manages deployments, and runs support. Learn more at <a href="https://www.meter.com/">meter.com</a>.

Legion of Doom, step aside. There’s a new elite hacker group in town, and they’re calling themselves Masters of Deception (MoD). With tactics that are grittier and more sophisticated than those of the LoD, MoD has targeted high-profile entities and left an indelible mark on the internet. This is part 2 of the LoD/MoD series. Sponsors Support for this show comes from <a href="https://www.threatlocker.com/">ThreatLocker®</a>. ThreatLocker® is a Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform that strengthens your infrastructure from the ground up. With ThreatLocker® Allowlisting and Ringfencing™, you gain a more secure approach to blocking exploits of known and unknown vulnerabilities. ThreatLocker® provides Zero Trust control at the kernel level that enables you to allow everything you need and block everything else, including ransomware! Learn more at <a href="https://www.threatlocker.com/">www.threatlocker.com</a>. This show is sponsored by <a href="https://redcanary.com/">Red Canary</a>. Red Canary is a leading provider of Managed Detection and Response (MDR), helping nearly 1,000 organizations detect and stop threats before they cause harm. With a focus on accuracy across identities, endpoints, and cloud, we deliver trusted security operations and a world-class customer experience. Learn more at <a href="https://redcanary.com/">redcanary.com</a>. This show is sponsored by [Maze][http://mazehq.com/darknet]. Maze uses AI agents to triage and remediate cloud vulnerabilities by figuring out what’s actually exploitable, not just what’s theoretically risky. They remove the noise, prioritize vulns that matter, and manage remediation, so your team stops wasting time on meaningless vulns. Visit [MazeHQ.com/darknet][http://mazehq.com/darknet] for more information. Sources <a href="https://amzn.to/4q3O0gJ">Book: Masters of Deception</a> <a href="https://amzn.to/3N4bovY">Book: The Hacker Crackdown</a> <a href="https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,982254-1,00.html">https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,982254-1,00.html</a> <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1995/01/14/nyregion/reprogramming-convicted-hacker-his-line-friends-phiber-optik-virtual-hero.html">https://www.nytimes.com/1995/01/14/nyregion/reprogramming-convicted-hacker-his-line-friends-phiber-optik-virtual-hero.html</a> <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/101/pg101-images.html">https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/101/pg101-images.html</a> <a href="https://phrack.org/issues/31/5">https://phrack.org/issues/31/5</a> <a href="https://www.thisamericanlife.org/2/small-scale-sin">https://www.thisamericanlife.org/2/small-scale-sin</a>

The Legion of Doom (LoD) wasn’t just a “hacker group”, it captured the essence of underground hacking in the 80s/90s. BBSes, phreaking, rival crews, and the crackdowns that changed everything. From those humble beginnings came a legacy that still echoes through modern security culture today. Sponsors Support for this show comes from <a href="https://www.threatlocker.com/">ThreatLocker®</a>. ThreatLocker® is a Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform that strengthens your infrastructure from the ground up. With ThreatLocker® Allowlisting and Ringfencing™, you gain a more secure approach to blocking exploits of known and unknown vulnerabilities. ThreatLocker® provides Zero Trust control at the kernel level that enables you to allow everything you need and block everything else, including ransomware! Learn more at <a href="https://www.threatlocker.com/">www.threatlocker.com</a>. This show is sponsored by <a href="https://www.rippling.com/darknet">Rippling</a>. Rippling is the unified platform for Global HR, Payroll, IT, and Finance. They’ve helped millions replace their mess of cobbled-together tools with one system designed to give leaders clarity, speed, and control. With Rippling, you can run your entire HR, IT, and Finance operations as one, or pick and choose the products that best fill the gaps in your software stack. Learn more <a href="https://www.rippling.com/darknet">rippling.com/darknet</a>. This show is sponsored by <a href="https://meter.com/darknet">Meter</a>, the company building networks from the ground up. Meter delivers a complete networking stack - wired, wireless, and cellular - in one solution that’s built for performance and scale. Meter’s full-stack solution covers everything from first site survey to ongoing support, giving you a single partner for all your connectivity needs. Go to <a href="https://meter.com/darknet">meter.com/darknet</a> to book a demo now! Sources <a href="https://amzn.to/4q3O0gJ">Book: Masters of Deception</a> (https://amzn.to/4q3O0gJ) <a href="https://amzn.to/3N4bovY">Book: The Hacker Crackdown</a> (https://amzn.to/3N4bovY)

Maxie Reynolds loves an adventure, especially the kind where she’s breaking into buildings (legally). In this episode, she shares stories from her time as a professional penetration tester, including high-stakes physical intrusions, red team chaos, and the unique adrenaline of hacking the real world. Her book: <a href="https://amzn.to/4ojYSVZ">The Art of Attack: Attacker Mindset for Security Professionals</a> (https://amzn.to/4ojYSVZ) Her data center: <a href="https://www.subseacloud.com/">www.subseacloud.com/</a>

Tanya Janca is a globally recognized AppSec (application security) expert and founder of We Hack Purple. In this episode, she shares wild stories from the front lines of cybersecurity. She shares stories of when she was a penetration tester to an incident responder. You can sign up for her newsletter at <a href="https://newsletter.shehackspurple.ca/">https://newsletter.shehackspurple.ca/</a> Sponsors Support for this show comes from <a href="https://www.threatlocker.com/">ThreatLocker®</a>. ThreatLocker® is a Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform that strengthens your infrastructure from the ground up. With ThreatLocker® Allowlisting and Ringfencing™, you gain a more secure approach to blocking exploits of known and unknown vulnerabilities. ThreatLocker® provides Zero Trust control at the kernel level that enables you to allow everything you need and block everything else, including ransomware! Learn more at <a href="https://www.threatlocker.com/">www.threatlocker.com</a>. This episode is sponsored by <a href="https://hims.com/darknet">Hims</a>. Hims offers access to ED treatment options ranging from trusted generics that cost up to 95% less than brand names to Hard Mints, if prescribed. To get simple, online access to personalized, affordable care for ED, Hair Loss, Weight Loss, and more, visit <a href="https://hims.com/darknet">https://hims.com/darknet</a>. Support for this show comes from <a href="https://drata.com/darknetdiaries">Drata</a>. Drata is the trust management platform that uses AI-driven automation to modernize governance, risk, and compliance, helping thousands of businesses stay audit-ready and scale securely. Learn more at <a href="https://drata.com/darknetdiaries">drata.com/darknetdiaries</a>. <a href="https://darknetdiaries.com/sponsors/">View all active sponsors.</a> Books <a href="https://amzn.to/4qFzZqc">Alice and Bob Learn Secure Coding by Tanya Janca</a> <a href="https://amzn.to/4qC3M30">Alice and Bob Learn Application Security by Tanya Janca</a>

He started small, swiping cards, buying gift cards, and cashing out. It spiraled into a full‑blown criminal enterprise. Dozens of co‑conspirators, stacks of stolen plastic, and a lifestyle built on chaos. Meet Nathan Michael, leader of Oak Cliff Swipers. Sponsors Support for this show comes from <a href="https://www.threatlocker.com/">ThreatLocker®</a>. ThreatLocker® is a Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform that strengthens your infrastructure from the ground up. With ThreatLocker® Allowlisting and Ringfencing™, you gain a more secure approach to blocking exploits of known and unknown vulnerabilities. ThreatLocker® provides Zero Trust control at the kernel level that enables you to allow everything you need and block everything else, including ransomware! Learn more at <a href="https://www.threatlocker.com/">www.threatlocker.com</a>. Support for this show comes from <a href="https://pantheon.io/">Pantheon</a>. Pantheon keeps your site fast, secure, and always on. That means better SEO, more conversions, and no lost sales from downtime. But this isn’t just a business win; it’s a developer win too. Your team gets automated workflows, isolated test environments, and zero-downtime deployments. Visit <a href="https://pantheon.io/">Pantheon.io</a>, and make your website your unfair advantage. Support for this show comes from <a href="https://www.adaptivesecurity.com/">Adaptive Security</a>. Deepfake voices on a Zoom call. AI-written phishing emails that sound exactly like your CFO. Synthetic job applicants walking through the front door. Adaptive is built to stop these attacks. They run real-time simulations, exposing your teams to what these attacks look like to test and improve your defences. Learn more at <a href="https://www.adaptivesecurity.com/">adaptivesecurity.com</a>.