EPISODE 3

Episode 3 - Alethe Denis

From Pet Store to Professional Pentesting.
About the Guest

Alethe Denis

Position, Company Name

Alethe Denis shot to fame in 2019 when she won the Social Engineering CTF at DEF CON, and was awarded the Black Badge. The hacking world applauded the public manifestation of her superpower - empathy - but success didn't follow immediately.

In this episode, Alethe talks about the events, experiences and people that shaped her, including:

  • Being chased by an elephant in the African veldt
  • How a Soundgarden CD helped her discover her powers of manipulation
  • Being a victim of online grooming, and being blamed for it
  • Escaping a circle of predators at a Def Leppard concert while in her early teens
  • Inadvertently being an accomplice in a spying mission led by her grandmother and aided by her grandfather
  • The two most striking things about growing up in South Africa
  • Starting her own security consulting business to overcome the perception that she was more than "just a social engineer" - and eventually becoming a red teamer
  • How Lady Gaga helped her overcome tremendous adversity, and the message she'd like to send her

Alethe makes some bold admissions about social engineering, and also shares actionable tips for how parents can help ensure that their children do not become victims of online predators.

Want to see what it looks like?