EP 59 - Nat Mokry on Advancing Application Security in the Gaming Industry

Future of Application Security

In our latest episode of the Future of Application Security podcast, Nat Mokry, VP of Application & Product Security at Xbox (formerly of Activision Blizzard at the time of recording), shares valuable insights into the world of application security, from the mission of defending player trust to emphasizing the importance of technical skills in cybersecurity.

Nat provides guidance on building effective security teams and navigating the evolving challenges in the industry.

Topics discussed:

• Earning and defending player trust as a guiding principle of business and strategies for making mission statements actionable.
• Building and structuring a diverse security team, and the challenges faced by appsec teams in the current landscape.
• The concept of the "piggy bank of trust" in security relationships that Nat says helps him and his team remember that people skills are important too.
• Balancing technical expertise and security knowledge, depending on what your data is telling you.
• Having the humility to ask questions and not have all the answers.
• The difference between solving problems for people and minimizing the chances of them doing something wrong.