Episode 2: When a business gets infected with ransomware - its systems and data locked down by cybercriminals - there is rarely a quick fix to get back up and running. Sometimes the nature of the attack and the lack of backup options force the victim organization to pony up and pay ransom to the attackers. That's typically where a ransomware negotiator – often a third-party incident responder – steps in. These are the experts who communicate and negotiate with the ransomware attackers on the ransom demands, with the goal of decrypting locked-down systems so the victim business can get fully back up and running. In Episode 2 of Dark Reading Confidential, we meet two professional ransomware negotiators who share their real-world stories of the delicate deal-making process with cybercriminals who hold victims' computer systems and data for ransom. Among their stories: How they negotiated with cybercriminals to restore operations in a hospital NICU where lives were at stake, and a negotiation on behalf of a church, when the attackers themselves got "a little religion."

The first episode of Dark Reading Confidential dives into the complicated relationship between the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) within publicly traded companies. Frederick “Flee” Lee, CISO of Reddit, Beth Waller, a practicing cyber attorney who represents many CISOs, and Ben Lee, Chief Legal Officer of Reddit, chat with Dark Reading’s editor-in-chief Kelly Jackson Higgins and senior editor Becky Bracken.

Breaking News: Dark Reading's brand-new podcast, Dark Reading Confidential, is coming this month. Dark Reading Confidential brings you rare, firsthand stories from cybersecurity practitioners in the cyber trenches. Join us for our inaugural episode, "The CISO and the SEC," with our guests Reddit CISO Fredrick Lee, Reddit Chief Legal Officer Ben Lee, and cybersecurity and data privacy attorney Beth Burgin Waller, who will share their stories and insights on the new SEC cyber incident reporting rules. Subscribe so you won't miss this or any episodes.