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Sep 10, 2025
Jake Braun, a longtime DEF CON organizer and former White House official, shares insights on Project Franklin, a mission to fortify U.S. water systems against cyber threats. The discussion highlights a major data leak linked to North Korean APT Kimsuky, declining ransomware payments in education, and Apple's new Memory Integrity Enforcement. Braun emphasizes community collaboration in tackling vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure, while also shedding light on innovative privacy technologies that utilize Wi-Fi to identify individuals, raising intriguing privacy concerns.
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How Project Franklin Began
- Jake Braun and Jeff Moss conceived Project Franklin over dinner in Munich to link DEF CON talent with civic problems.
- They named it after Benjamin Franklin to signal a blend of scientific inquiry and civic engagement.
Water Utilities Are Cybersecurity Weak Links
- U.S. water utilities are widely under-resourced and increasingly digitized, raising cybersecurity risks.
- DEF CON Franklin discovered many small utilities lack basic protections and depend on volunteer support.
Start With Basics Then Build Resilience
- Help water utilities start with basics: change default passwords and enable multi-factor authentication.
- Move on to asset inventory and incident response planning to build lasting resilience.