The Security Distillery Podcast

In the last episode of Cyberdistillery, Giuditta and Andrea talk with Dr. Marina Ayeb about her research on computational propaganda and troll farms in the Middle East, understood through the lens of labour studies as real workplaces. First, Marina takes us through the history and origins of troll farms and computational propaganda, touching on the 2016 U.S. Presidential Elections, Brexit, and WikiLeaks. Then she tells us how she and Tiziano Bonini managed to access Middle Eastern troll farms to conduct research on these “black boxes,” which were revealed to be highly organised, hierarchical places. Troll farm worker profiles differed across her research: trolls in Tunisia, Egypt, and Iraq were motivated by economic reasons and faced high psychological and moral costs in their jobs, while Iranian trolls were driven by ideology and patriotism. She concludes that the most unexpected and interesting finding of her research was how human the work of computational propaganda in the Middle East is: what emerged from their interviews was that behind a cyber troll, there were real humans with ambitions, doubts, and daily ethical struggles for being responsible for influencing the opinion of millions of people. At the end of the episode, we discuss the gender aspect of Middle Eastern troll farms, and Marina shares insights into her future research. Marina’s publication: Ayeb, M., & Bonini, T. (2024). “It Was Very Hard for Me to Keep Doing That Job”: Understanding Troll Farm’s Working in the Arab World. Social Media + Society, 10(1). Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts: Andrea Bussini, Giuditta FioriEditor: Andrea Bussini

In this episode of Cyberdistillery, Giuditta and Andrea explore the human factor in cybersecurity with Erlend Andreas Gjære, co-founder and CEO of Secure Practice, and creator of SheSpeaksCyber. Erlend emphasises that security is about people and processes, not just technology. Moreover, he discusses the importance of storytelling to make abstract threats tangible, scalable training for leaders and coordinators, and interactive disruption exercises to familiarise employees with the effects of a cyberattack. Together, they also talk about SheSpeaksCyber, Erlend's initiative to provide a directory for female cybersecurity speakers, working as a catalogue to propose themselves as speakers for conferences and for conferences to find them.Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts: Andrea Bussini, Giuditta FioriEditor: Andrea Bussini

In this second part of the third episode of Cyberdistillery, Giuditta and Andrea, joined by Maria Vittoria Zucca - a PhD candidate in the National Italian PhD program Cybersecurity, led by the IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca - continue the "cyber-medical analysis” of the (Italian) healthcare sector. Maria Vittoria takes us through the “therapy” that needs to be carried out to strengthen the cybersecurity of the (Italian) healthcare sector, building readiness against threats and assessing vulnerabilities before, during, and after a cyberattack.  Next, she provides a prognosis for the healthcare sector, looking ahead to foster a cybersecurity culture in hospitals by providing training and implementing professional cybersecurity roles, such as Data Protection Officers, in the healthcare. Maria Vittoria’s publication referred to in this episode: ZUCCA, M.V. (2025) Cyber(in)sicurezza in sanità: un ponte comunicativo tra medicina, informatica e diritto. BioLaw Journal - Rivista di BioDiritto, 1, pp. 291–303.Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts: Andrea Bussini, Giuditta FioriEditor: Andrea Bussini

In this first part of the third episode of Cyberdistillery, Giuditta and Andrea discuss with Maria Vittoria Zucca - a PhD candidate in the National PhD program in Cybersecurity, led by the IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca - about cybersecurity in the healthcare system, specifically the Italian one. Treating the healthcare system as a “cyber-patient”, Maria Vittoria identifies the main symptoms of hospitals in the cybersecurity domain, that is to say, their principal vulnerabilities; for instance, the uncontrolled circulation of data, the technological backwardness, and the fragile cybersecurity culture in (Italian) hospitals, among many others. Moreover, after identifying the symptoms, Maria Vittoria provides a “cyber-diagnosis” of the most dangerous cyber threats to the healthcare sector, pinpointing the primary targets of malicious cyber actors within healthcare systems, including data, infrastructure, and medical devices. She also touches on the risks associated with AI. In the next episode, part 2, Giuditta, Andrea, and Maria Vittoria will address the other two crucial steps in the cyber-medical analysis of healthcare systems: treatment and prognosis. Maria Vittoria’s publication referred to in this episode: ZUCCA, M.V. (2025) Cyber(in)sicurezza in sanità: un ponte comunicativo tra medicina, informatica e diritto. BioLaw Journal - Rivista di BioDiritto, 1, pp. 291–303.Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts: Andrea Bussini, Giuditta FioriEditor: Andrea Bussini

In the second episode of Cyberdistillery, Giuditta and Andrea discuss with Ayah Tharwat, a University of Luxembourg PhD student, about the impact of psychological distance on the disclosure of sensitive company information when using GenAI tools, specifically ChatGPT. The conversation builds on Ayah’s academic research at the University of Luxembourg, where she has reflected on how employees are increasingly using generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools to facilitate and automate work processes, and found that four main dimensions affect GenAI disclosure of sensitive company information: social, spatial, temporal, and hypothetical dimensions.   Giuditta, Ayah, and Andrea discuss how proximity can substantially affect threat perception, in any aspect of our life and in many different domains. Together, they also address how other factors could impact the willingness of employees to share sensitive information on LLMs, such as general awareness of cybersecurity risks, human factors such as emotions and stress, and the specific company practices, guidelines, and culture concerning the use of AI to carry out tasks. Ayah’s publication: Frank, Muriel; Tharwat, Ayah; and Pocher, Nadia, "Far Enough to Share: Impact of Psychological Distance on GenAI Disclosure" (2025). AMCIS 2025 Proceedings. 20. https://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2025/sig_sec/sig_sec/20 Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts: Andrea Bussini, Giuditta FioriEditor: Andrea Bussini

In this first episode of the new podcast series Cyberdistillery, Andrea Bussini introduces our new co-host Giuditta Fiori , Women4Cyber Italia Youth Ambassador 2025. Giuditta describes what is like to be part of Women4Cyber the goals of the organisation and their vision for the future. Moreover, they touch upon the importance of integrating women in the development of Large Language Models (LLMs). Together they announce the beginning of Cyberdistillery, a new podcast series consisting of interviews to academics and practitioners in the diverse world of cybersecurity.Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts: Andrea Bussini, Giuditta FioriEditor: Andrea Bussini

One month after the Annual Cimic Foresight Conference 2025, the Security Distillery Team reflects on their experience at the CCOE. Giuditta, Andrea, and Flavio discuss about the sessions they have taken part in. Furthermore, they debate on how their understanding of CIMIC has changed after the Conference.Photo credits: liveillustration.co.ukFind out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts: Andrea Bussini, Giuditta Fiori, Flavio Piemontese CartierEditor: Andrea Bussini

In this special episode of our podcast, Andrea and Alberto have the pleasure to announce that the Security Distillery will attend and cover through our social media the Annual Cimic Foresight Conference 2025, “From Foresight to Action: Evolving CIMIC Capabilities”, which is organised by the CCOE, the Civil-Military Cooperation NATO Centre of Excellence. They introduce the theme of this year’s Foresight Conference, touching upon what the Security Distillery will be tasked with doing throughout the conference. Furthermore, they talk about their recent experience at the CCOE, where they attended a Summer School, organised by the OTH Regensburg an hosted by the CCOE, on intelligence analysis. Building on the experience, they discuss about what civil and military cooperation means to them, and their main takeaways from the experience. Stay tuned for more updates regarding the Annual Cimic Foresight Conference 2025 on our social media!Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts: Alberto Aloni and Andrea BussiniEditor: Andrea Bussini

In the aftermath of what appears to be an intentional Russian incursion in Polish airspace with drones, Mathéo and Andrea talk about what happened and discuss the implications of this event for NATO, what the future may have in store for NATO countries and how to deal with the increasing pressure from the Russian Federation.Photo credits: a photograph posted on social media showing a damaged drone after falling in the eastern Polish village of Czosnowka, on Wednesday. Dariusz Stefaniuk, via ReutersFind out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts: Mathéo Bisiaux and Andrea BussiniEditor: Andrea Bussini

In this episode, Mathéo and Andrea address the latest developments of drone usage in Ukraine, amid the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. Mathéo describes the different typologies of drones that are currently being employed in the conflict, with a particular focus on FPVs, discussing strategic and military implications of their usage in Ukraine. On the other hand, Andrea delves into legal, ethical, and psychological aspects that characterise drone warfare. Together, they assess the impact that drones will have on the future of war, and how future battlefields will look like. Photo credits: Petro Zadorozhnyy / State Border Guard Service of Ukraine / the Collection of war.ukraine.uaThe views expressed in this podcast are of the authors only. Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts: Mathéo Bisiaux and Andrea BussiniEditor: Andrea Bussini

In this Special Episode, Flavio and Oscar have the pleasure to interview Matthias Spielkamp, Founder and Executive Director of AlgorithmWatch, during the 2025 Computers, Privacy and Data Protection (CPDP) Conference held in Brussels. In this episode, Matthias tells us about his professional journey, how he founded AlgorithmWatch and why. Moreover, our hosts discuss with Matthias about AI and its implications for democracy and geopolitics, while addressing its impact on society and the environment.Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts: Flavio Piemontese Cartier and Oscar SlootwegEditor: Andrea Bussini

In the Intelligence Espresso, the Security Distillery’s podcast team boils down key events in global affairs into a short and sharp briefing to kick-start your day. What better way to keep up with the most important stories from around the world than from the specialist - and highly caffeinated - perspectives of our hosts. In this episode, Buster discusses a recent Chinese missile test, what it tells us about China’s nuclear weapons program and strategy, and whether any form of arms control is feasible. Afterwards, Angus will talk about disinformation, how it influences our lives, ranging from memes on the internet to national elections, and how we might combat it.Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on social media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts:Angus Cooper & Buster N. HartvigsenEditor:Buster N. Hartvigsen

In this Special Episode of our podcasts, The Security Distillery team members Susanna, Michele, Cecile, Chiara and Dolores discuss their experience in the 2024 edition of the CPDP.ai Conference. They talk about their favorite topics, panels, workshops and exhibitions of the event. Listen to their experiences alongside the world’s leading practitioners, lawyers and fundamental rights activists in the world of Computers, Privacy, Data Protection and AI.

In this episode, Josefine and Angus discuss the NATO alliance in relation to its 75th anniversary and the recent summit in Washington. Josefine shares her reflections from a NATO-packed summer, and our hosts talk about how NATO makes decisions, the war in Ukraine, and how it relates to the Indo-Pacific region, and much more. Tune in!

In the Intelligence Espresso, the Security Distillery’s podcast team boils down key events in global affairs into a short and sharp briefing to kick-start your day. What better way to keep up with the most important stories from around the world than from the specialist - and highly caffeinated - perspectives of our hosts. In this episode, James discusses the recent controversial Cass Review into trans healthcare for under-18s and brings on special guest Georgia to provide her opinion based on her experience with NHS trans healthcare. Afterwards, Josefine will discuss the recent escalation between Iran and Israel, what this means for the region, and the potential for further escalation between the two regional powers.Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on social media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistillery For enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.org Hosts:James Shepherd & Josefine PaulsenSpecial Guest:Georgia Cunningham LomaxEditor:Buster N. Hartvigsen

In the Intelligence Espresso, the Security Distillery’s podcast team boils down key events in global affairs into a short and sharp briefing to kick-start your day. What better way to keep up with the most important stories from around the world than from the specialist - and highly caffeinated - perspectives of our hosts. In this episode, Buster will examine the recently held Turkish local election, the opposition party's victory, Turkey's economy, and what it might mean for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Afterwards, Dolo will discuss the upcoming presidential election in Venezuela, why it is being held, how Nicolás Maduro is oppressing the opposition, and how the conflict over Essequibo ties into it.Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on social media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgHosts:María Dolores García & Buster N. HartvigsenEditor:Buster N. Hartvigsen

In the latest episode of the Intelligence Espresso, Buster will discuss the donation of F-16s by several NATO countries to Ukraine, why the delivery of the aircraft are delayed, and how they might shape the war in Ukraine. Afterwards, Johanna will talk about the EU’s newly released European Defence Industrial Strategy, why it was created, and which potentially contentious debates might lie ahead.Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.org

In this episode of the Security Distillery Podcast, hosts James, Josefine, and Costanza analyze the events of the past two years of conflict. They compare expert predictions with the realities witnessed on the battlefield, and analyze how the war has altered Russian foreign policy to its south and east. Additionally, our hosts comment on the current status and potential future of European and American support to Ukraine, the perseverance of Ukrainians and life in Russia today. Tune in!As a new feature, The Security Distillery Podcast is now available on all podcasting apps, so listen to us on your favourite podcast app.Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgEditor/Producer: Josefine Paulsen. Hosts: James Shepherd, Josefine Paulsen and Costanza Balmer

In the latest episode of the Intelligence Espresso, Angus will discuss the ongoing civil war in Myanmar in light of the military regime's recent announcement that they will enforce a conscription of civilians into the armed forces, following significant gains made by rebel militia groups. Next, Josefine shall discuss the suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of Alexei Navalny, and what this may mean for the opposition to Vladmir Putin's regime in Russia. Then, Dolo shall consider the controversial reforms introduced by the president of El Salvador: Nayib Bukele and his rise in popularity amid accusations of human rights violations.Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.org

Check out the first episode in our new series election special podcast. In this Pakistani election special of the Security Distillery Podcast, we sit down with our colleague Fatima to discuss the upcoming election in Pakistan. Amongst others, we cover the following topics during the episode:Why the election has been postponed into 2024.How the Pakistani military has yet again influenced the election, especially with the imprisonment of former prime minister Imran Khan.The return of three-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif to Pakistani politics and how this might shape Pakistani foreign policy.As a new feature, The Security Distillery Podcast is now available on all podcasting apps, so listen to us on your favourite podcast app.Find out more about the Security Distillery and follow us on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/thesecuritydistilleryFor enquiries and feedback, contact us at: information@thesecuritydistillery.orgEditor/Producer: Buster N. Hartvigsen. Hosts: Buster N. Hartvigsen.