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The 9-Year SRT Veteran: Ozgur Alp on the Evolution of Hacking

Episode Summary

In this episode, host Josh Mason chats with Synack Red Team Legend Ozgur Alp, who shares his offensive security journey from university to big four consulting to full-time Synack Red Team researcher. Ozgur gives his unique take on where AI excels (and falls short), which roles AI will replace, and whether the cost of AI is sustainable in the long-term.

Episode Notes

In this episode, host Josh Mason chats with Synack Red Team Legend Ozgur Alp, who shares his offensive security journey from university to big four consulting to full-time Synack Red Team researcher. Ozgur gives his unique take on where AI excels (and falls short), which roles AI will replace, and whether the cost of AI is sustainable in the long-term.

 

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction: Meet Ozgur

03:28 Joining the Synack Red Team

07:13 Critical Authorization and Authentication Bugs

08:03 Why Ozgur Still Uses Burp 1.7.37

08:32 Pentesting with AI and Automation

09:12 Will AI Replace Human Pentesters?

11:53 Why AI Struggles with Business Logic

13:45 Why Google Can't "Solve" XSS (Even with AI)

14:47 How Mythos is Changing Offensive Security

16:15 The Benefits of Hacking with AI

17:09 How AI is Changing Pentesting

19:42 Vibe Coding is Creating More Security Vulnerabilities

23:11 Is the Cost of AI Sustainable Long-Term?

23:51 Closing Remarks