{"id":242665,"date":"2026-07-13T04:58:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T08:58:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/13\/inside-declassified-preserving-cybersecuritys-untold-stories-intelligent-ciso\/"},"modified":"2026-07-13T05:10:08","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T09:10:08","slug":"inside-declassified-preserving-cybersecuritys-untold-stories-intelligent-ciso","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/13\/inside-declassified-preserving-cybersecuritys-untold-stories-intelligent-ciso\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside Declassified: Preserving cybersecurity\u2019s untold stories \u2013 Intelligent CISO"},"content":{"rendered":"

Inside Declassified: Preserving cybersecurity\u2019s untold stories \u2013 Intelligent CISO<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.intelligentciso.com\/2026\/07\/13\/inside-declassified-preserving-cybersecuritys-untold-stories\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Publish Date: 2026-07-13 04:58:00<\/a><\/p>\n

Source Domain: www.intelligentciso.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Author: <\/a><\/p>\n

Using an unordered list, summarize the following article with between 4 and 8 key points. <\/p>\n

Behind every major cyber-incident is a story that never makes it into the official report. Declassified, a docuseries from Red Mirror Studios, aims to change that by giving experienced cybersecurity leaders the opportunity to share the personal experiences and lessons that have shaped their careers. Red Mirror Studios CEO and Co-Founder Danielle Lewan and John Sapp Jr., Field CISO at Chainguard and one of the docuseries\u2019 contributors, exclusively tell Intelligent CISO editor Mark Bowen why preserving those stories could help build a more resilient generation of security leaders.<\/p>\n

Red Mirror Studios CEO and Co-Founder Danielle Lewan said Declassified grew out of two careers that, at first glance, appeared very different. Having begun as an investigative journalist before moving into enterprise security, she found herself driven by the same question throughout both professions: what really happens behind the headlines?<\/p>\n

Rather than focusing on official statements or incident reports, Lewan said she had always been interested in understanding how people navigated their most difficult moments. That curiosity followed her into cybersecurity, where security leaders became the people she called whenever organisations experienced major incidents.<\/p>\n

She explained that while reports documented what had happened, they rarely captured how leaders made decisions under pressure, how they balanced uncertainty or how experience and instinct shaped the outcome. Those conversations ultimately became the foundation of Red Mirror Studios and its first docuseries series, Declassified.<\/p>\n

Lewan described the project as a peer-to-peer storytelling platform designed to preserve knowledge that would otherwise disappear. The 11 security leaders featured in the series represent some of the most senior practitioners in cybersecurity, all of whom broke a decades-long tradition of public silence to sit down for on-camera interviews. Filmed during the RSA Conference, episode 1 is scheduled for release this summer ahead of Black Hat, the docuseries captures a generation of industry veterans whose experiences have never been properly documented.<\/p>\n

One of the strongest themes to emerge surprised even her. Despite leading some of the world\u2019s largest security programmes, almost none of the participants had originally intended to build careers in cybersecurity.<\/p>\n

Some had been plumbers, bakers or college dropouts, while others had been pursuing entirely different careers before finding their way into the profession.<\/p>\n

For Lewan, that reflected the reality of an industry that is still relatively young and built by people willing to admit uncertainty. Rather than presenting themselves as experts with all the answers, many had succeeded because they were prepared to say: \u201cI don\u2019t know, but I\u2019ll figure it out.\u201d<\/p>\n

She believes that openness is precisely what cybersecurity needs more of.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe people doing the work are often the ones who have the most valuable lessons to teach,\u201d she said, arguing that politics, branding and organisational concerns too often silence the people with the greatest practical experience.<\/p>\n

During filming, Lewan said she was continually struck by the extraordinary diversity of the contributors. Among them is a former US Secret Service Special Agent who reveals for the first time how he was poisoned while working undercover, a security leader who was on duty at the US Treasury Department during the September 11 terrorist attacks, a former PhD student who abandoned an almost-completed doctorate to establish a non-profit after witnessing the impact online predators have on children and an expert warning about a cybercrime treaty that has quietly been adopted by more than 70 nations.<\/p>\n

Others were helping shape international cybercrime treaties through the United Nations, teaching postgraduate Artificial Intelligence students or leading security programmes for some of the world\u2019s largest organisations without traditional academic qualifications.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat makes the series unique,\u201d she said, \u201cisn\u2019t perfect qualifications. It\u2019s judgement, resilience, persistence and the ability to keep learning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite encouraging unprecedented openness, Lewan stressed that transparency has limits.<\/p>\n

Drawing on her background in investigative journalism, she said the project was built around understanding exactly where the line should be drawn between education and unnecessary disclosure.<\/p>\n

For her, the objective was never to reveal sensitive information, but to share the judgement and experience that could better prepare the next generation of security leaders.<\/p>\n

Building that level of trust, she said, came from genuine curiosity and empathy.<\/p>\n

She laughed that when people ask about her hobbies, her answer is always the same: \u2018People\u2019.<\/p>\n

Nothing interests her more than sitting down with someone and asking them to explain their world, what they had learned, where they had failed and which mistakes ultimately made them better leaders.<\/p>\n

She believes cybersecurity professionals are often misunderstood.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re protectors. They\u2019re defenders. They\u2019re servants at heart.\u201d<\/p>\n

That commitment, she said, was demonstrated by the willingness of all 11 participants to appear in the docuseries without payment, travelling during one of the busiest weeks of the year simply because they wanted others to learn from their experiences.<\/p>\n

Among those participants is John Sapp Jr., Field CISO at Chainguard, who previously served as CISO for both an insurance company and a global medical advice organisation before moving into his current customer-facing role.<\/p>\n

Sapp said his motivation for taking part was simple.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe opportunity to tell the real stories was what inspired me.\u201d<\/p>\n

While cybersecurity incidents are frequently reported, he believes very few people truly understand what security leaders experience behind closed doors.<\/p>\n

The docuseries, he said, offers an opportunity to explain the difficult decisions, pressures and responsibilities that rarely become public.<\/p>\n

Sapp also sees cybersecurity as an extension of a lifelong commitment to protecting others.<\/p>\n

Coming from a family that included military personnel and a Chief of Police, he said that instinct had always been present, even if his role now involved protecting organisations digitally rather than physically.<\/p>\n

He believes one of the defining challenges of modern CISOs is being accountable without necessarily having authority.<\/p>\n

Security leaders must influence executives, business leaders and employees rather than simply direct them, making resilience and communication every bit as important as technical expertise.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, however, he hopes viewers remember one central message.<\/p>\n

\u201cTransparency builds resilience.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking back on his involvement in the docuseries, Sapp recalled that his first meeting with Lewan happened entirely by chance after the pair literally bumped into one another in a hotel.<\/p>\n

What persuaded him to participate was the opportunity to finally discuss experiences that had remained largely unspoken throughout his career.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe carry the burden of knowing things we often can\u2019t talk about,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Unlike many other professions, Sapp believes CISOs rarely have the opportunity to process the trauma associated with major incidents.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen people experience trauma in other walks of life, they have therapists, counsellors or support groups. Security leaders rarely have that. We didn\u2019t have anyone to talk to.\u201d<\/p>\n

He stressed that none of the contributors wanted to embarrass former employers or reveal confidential information.<\/p>\n

Instead, they wanted to explain what they had experienced, what they had learned and how those experiences had shaped them so that future security leaders would not have to repeat the same mistakes.<\/p>\n

\u201cHistory doesn\u2019t have to repeat itself,\u201d Sapp said. \u201cWe can\u2019t afford for it to.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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