How to Adopt AI Without Creating Security Risks with Kate Marshall

In Episode 196 of Open Tech Talks, host Kashif Manzoor sits down with Kate Marshall, a cybersecurity and AI adoption specialist, to discuss one of the biggest challenges facing organizations today: How can companies move quickly with AI while keeping their data, people, and systems secure? Kate brings nearly two decades of cybersecurity experience to the conversation and explains why AI adoption cannot be separated from cybersecurity, privacy, governance, and employee training. The conversation starts with the growing adoption of AI inside organizations and the different approaches taken by highly regulated industries versus organizations that are aggressively adopting autonomous AI agents. Kate explains that the biggest AI security risks often come from people using AI tools without understanding the risks. From downloading untrusted skills and encountering prompt injection to connecting AI systems to internal data, seemingly harmless actions can create serious security problems. The discussion then moves into practical steps organizations can take to adopt AI safely without creating unnecessary barriers. Kate recommends starting with two basic foundations: An AI policy An approved AI tools list But policy alone isn't enough. Organizations must also train employees, define permissions, establish governance, create incident-response processes, and continuously improve their AI adoption strategy. The episode also explores the importance of measuring AI ROI, creating digital twins for critical business processes, training employees to become effective AI operators, and ensuring that teams understand how to use AI tools responsibly. For developers and product teams building applications with LLMs, Kate highlights another important issue: accountability. When an AI-powered product makes a mistake, who is responsible? That question needs to be considered during product design—not after something goes wrong. The episode closes with advice for professionals who want to learn AI security, as well as a message for anyone feeling overwhelmed by the speed of AI development: Episode # 196 Today's Guest: Kate Marshall, Fractional CAIO She helps organizations adopt AI with strong governance, workforce readiness, and practical support. She spent 18 years at the SANS Institute, leading Summits creating rapid-response training for emerging cybersecurity threats, curriculum marketing strategy, and courseware development Website: KateMarshall What Listeners Will Learn: How to Adopt AI Safely How to Build an AI Governance Framework How to Protect Sensitive Data When Using AI How to Manage AI Security Risks Why Employee AI Training Matters How to Balance AI Innovation and Security How to Create an Effective AI Policy How to Evaluate AI Tools and Permissions How to Build Secure AI Products How to Prepare Your Workforce for AI Resources: KateMarshall