Kathy Collins — From AOL to Award-Winning Cuisine to High-Stakes Hacking Recorded live at the 2025 Sunshine Cyber Conference in Tampa, Jack Clabby of Carlton Fields, P.A., and resident cybersecurity expert Kayley Melton, Executive Director of Operations at the Cognitive Security Institute, sit down with Kathy Collins, Security Consultant at Secure Ideas. Kathy shares her extraordinary journey, which began at the AOL help desk, took a flavorful detour through award-winning kitchens, and ultimately landed in the high-stakes world of penetration testing. Kathy explains how the intensity, precision, and discipline of her 15 years in fine dining prepared her for the unpredictable demands of cybersecurity. She recounts a particularly memorable physical pen test involving a rainy golf cart getaway—and a very unimpressed police officer. The conversation highlights Kathy’s passion for community building through events like BSides Jacksonville, where she encourages newcomers to dive in and get involved. In the Lifestyle Polygraph segment, Kayley throws Kathy two horror-themed questions with bite: which movie soundtrack best scores a pen test, and which fictional villain she’d trust most on an engagement. Fava beans and a nice Chianti may follow a successful test. https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathyvcollins/
Summary
In this episode of the No Password Required podcast, host Jack Clabby and co-host Kaylee Melton welcome Kathy Collins, a security consultant at Secure Ideas. Kathy shares her unique journey from working in IT to pursuing a culinary career, and then back to cybersecurity. The conversation explores the transferable skills between cooking and cybersecurity, the unpredictability of physical penetration testing, and the high-pressure situations faced in both fields. Kathy also recounts memorable experiences from her culinary career and discusses the lack of horror films centered around cybersecurity. In this engaging conversation, the speakers delve into various aspects of cybersecurity, including the use of the dark web in penetration testing, the importance of community events like B-Sides, and the fun of the Lifestyle Polygraph segment. They also share personal anecdotes about music, childhood memories, and culinary skills, creating a rich tapestry of insights and experiences in the cybersecurity field.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction to Cybersecurity and Culinary Journeys
02:46 From IT to Culinary Arts: A Unique Transition
06:02 The Shift Back to Cybersecurity
09:00 Experiences in Physical Penetration Testing
11:48 High-Pressure Situations: Cooking vs. Cybersecurity
15:02 Unexpected Challenges in Culinary Events
17:54 The Intersection of Horror and Cybersecurity
23:32 Exploring the Dark Web in Pen Testing
25:34 Engaging with the B-Sides Community
27:09 The Lifestyle Polygraph: Fun and Games
31:09 Bonding Over Music and Childhood Memories
34:17 Culinary Skills and Competition Insights