Speaker Spotlight: Amy Tom - Building the Local Cybersecurity Community: Meet Up by Meet Up

Steve Pellerin joins Jason D’Souza, host of CBC’s All Points West, for a timely conversation about cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and the practical steps we can all take to stay safer online. From AI-generated deepfakes and synthetic voices to increasingly convincing phishing and financial scams, the online threat landscape is changing quickly. Steve explains why awareness, strong account security, and local community connections matter more than ever—for individuals, families, businesses, and public institutions. They also discuss the value of building a stronger local cybersecurity community and preview BSides Vancouver Island, the annual community-driven cybersecurity conference bringing together security professionals, students, researchers, and curious newcomers on Vancouver Island. In this interview, you’ll hear about: How AI is making scams, deepfakes, and impersonation attempts more convincing Why “community is your first line of defense” against emerging cyber threats Practical ways to protect your accounts, including enabling multi-factor authentication How local meetup groups and security communities can improve cyber awareness Why organizations need to invest in people, training, and a stronger human firewall What to expect from BSides Vancouver Island If you take only one action after watching: turn on multi-factor authentication now—especially for your email, banking, and social-media accounts. 🎟️ Get your ticket now at bsidesvi.com and join Vancouver Island’s cybersecurity community for a full day of practical, community-driven security research and conversation. Follow BSides Vancouver Island for conference updates, community content, and future interviews: https://www.youtube.com/@BSidesVancouverIsland https://www.linkedin.com/company/26519449 https://www.instagram.com/bsidesvi #Cybersecurity #OnlineSafety #ArtificialIntelligence #Deepfakes #ScamAwareness #MFA #BSidesVI #BSidesVancouverIsland #VancouverIsland #CyberSecurityConference

Our very own Ryan Smith joined CBC On the Island host Gregor Craigie for a quick look at our upcoming BSides Vancouver Island conference and his upcoming talk, The Control Plane Awakens: How Attackers Are Taking Over Network Edge Infrastructure. Attackers are no longer just trying to get through the firewall or VPN—they are turning network-edge infrastructure into a long-term operational foothold. Ryan shares why this matters, how adversaries exploit these critical control points, and what defenders can do to detect and respond. See Ryan’s full presentation live at BSides Vancouver Island 2026 on Friday, September 25 at the Victoria Conference Centre. 🎟️ Get your ticket now at bsidesvi.com and join Vancouver Island’s cybersecurity community for a full day of practical, community-driven security research and conversation. #BSidesVI #Cybersecurity #NetworkSecurity #InfoSec #VictoriaBC

Get a rapid fire preview of the ideas, people and conversations coming to BSides Vancouver Island 2026.

Our volunteer Director at Large, Steven Pellerin, explores the use of AI in cybersecurity and the concept of a security harness with Michael Argast. It delves into the challenges of implementing AI, the importance of human-in-the-loop controls, and the role of community events in learning and sharing knowledge.

The conversation explores the challenges and risks associated with agentic AI and the need for a multi-layered defense approach, drawing parallels to the Thedosian Walls of Constantinople. It delves into the rise of non-human identities, the uniqueness and risk of AI agents, and the complexities of securing agentic AI in organizations.