060: You Can Build Fort Knox and Still Get Hacked | Tom Terronez

Dental office cybersecurity training is the one investment most practices skip, and it is exactly why hackers keep getting in. You can spend thousands locking down your network, but if your office manager clicks one bad link, all of that protection means nothing. Cyberattacks against dental practices and DSOs have surged through 2026, from major distributors to small single location offices, and most teams still have no idea what a real phishing attempt looks like.Brandi Marzolino, a 20 year dental industry veteran and leadership coach, sits down with Tom Terronez, CEO of Medix Dental IT, to unpack why people, not software, are the biggest vulnerability in every dental practice. Tom shares the real story behind the Fort Knox problem, why office managers are often the strongest advocates for security training, and how tech should free up your team to be more human with patients, not less. You will walk away knowing exactly what questions to ask before you buy new technology, why trust, once lost through a bad rollout, is nearly impossible to win back, and how a little warmth at the front desk can matter more than the fanciest system in the building.You’ll learn:Why dental office cybersecurity training matters more than any firewall, and how one clicked phishing link can undo thousands of dollars in IT protection.What to ask before your practice invests in new dental technology, so you avoid the shiny object syndrome that leads to expensive, disconnected systems.Why office managers are often the strongest advocates for cybersecurity training in dental practices, and why leadership still hesitates to invest in it.How a single mishandled tech rollout can break staff trust in leadership, and why rebuilding that trust afterward is nearly impossible.Why the biggest cybersecurity vulnerability in any dental practice is people, not software, and what regular training actually changes.How small human moments at the front desk, like a genuine hello, can matter more to patients than the most advanced technology in the building.🔗 Join the community and submit your anonymous questions:https://www.therealtalkofdental.com🔗 Learn more about The Empowered LeadHERship Program for Women in Dental:https://leadhershipexperience.com/🔗 Boundary Boss GPT:https://leadhershipexperience.com/boundarybossWe talk about:00:00 Why one bad email can undo your security budget01:44 Meet Tom Terronez, dental IT and cybersecurity expert03:08 The missing piece in every tech rollout is people06:21 What should you ask before buying new dental tech07:22 Why you should never buy technology at a conference13:54 The real gap between vendor onboarding and daily use15:26 How one bad tech rollout can break team trust18:00 Why losing trust is the hardest thing to earn back21:33 A patient check-in story that shows what tech misses33:44 What keeps DSO leaders up at night about cybersecurity37:00 Why lack of training is the real cybersecurity gap39:17 Why office managers are the real cybersecurity MVPsConnect with TomLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomas-terronez-9371104/ Website: https://medixdental.com/ Connect with meLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandimarzolino/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brandi.marzolino/https://courageandjoyatwork.com/https://leadhershipexperience.com/Phone: 616-682-6222#DentalCybersecurity #DentalOfficeSecurity #DentalPracticeManagement #DentalIT #CyberAttackPrevention #PhishingAwareness #DentalTechnology #DSOLeadership #HIPAACompliance #DentalOfficeManager #RansomwareProtection #DentalPracticeGrowth #DentalLeadership #PracticeCulture #TomTerronez #MedixDentalIT #TheRealTalkOfDental