
Episode 2: “It Depends”: Attribution, Analysis, and the Evolution of Cyber Reporting
Signals & StoriesShow Notes
As part of The Vertex Project’s 10-year anniversary podcast series, Kali Fencl sits down with Vertex analysts Ryann “reign” Hallback, Jennifer “thesilence” Kolde, and Mary Beth “savage” Lee for a conversation about how cyber threat intelligence has evolved over the last decade and where it’s headed next.
From the lasting impact of the APT1 report to the realities of attribution, intelligence sharing, media pressure, and modern threat reporting, this episode explores how analysts balance technical rigor, operational context, and public narratives in today’s cybersecurity landscape.
The discussion also dives into mentorship, representation, and the qualities that truly make a great analyst: critical thinking, curiosity, adaptability, and intellectual humility.
In this episode: • How cyber reporting evolved beyond malware analysis • Why attribution is more complicated than most people realize • The tension between intelligence sharing and publicity • How geopolitics now shapes cyber operations • Why diverse perspectives improve intelligence analysis • The traits that separate strong analysts from the rest
Whether you work in cyber threat intelligence, SOC operations, incident response, or are simply interested in how the industry has changed over the past decade, this conversation offers an inside look at the people and thinking behind modern cyber investigations.
#CyberSecurity #ThreatIntelligence #CTI #CyberThreatIntel #APT1 #InformationSecurity #ThreatAnalysis #WomenInCyber #CyberPodcast #TheVertexProject
https://vertex.link/10-year-anniversary
Join our community: Slack LinkedIn Twitter/X Bluesky
More from Signals & Stories
For the final episode of this season of Signals & Stories, we’re going back to where the series began with Vertex Project co-founders visi and John “whippit” Rodgers.
What happens when the people building intelligence software work side-by-side with the analysts actually using it?
How do you know when intelligence is actually trustworthy?
Every cyber threat intelligence analyst eventually encounters a few uncomfortable truths.
Even the most experienced cyber threat intelligence (CTI) analysts aren't immune to cognitive bias. In this episode of Signals & Stories, the team explores some of the most common analytical pitfalls that can quietly influence investigations and how strong analytical tradecraft helps avoid them.