Breaking Into Banks and Bypassing Modern Security with Greg Hatcher and John Stigerwalt

Three banks in four days isn't just a bragging right for penetration testers. It's a wake-up call showing that expensive security tools and alarm systems often fail when tested by skilled operators who understand both human behavior and technical vulnerabilities.

Greg Hatcher and John Stigerwalt, co-founders of White Knight Labs, talk about their latest physical penetration tests on financial institutions, manufacturing facilities protecting COVID-19 vaccine production, and why their new Server 2025 course had to rewrite most common Active Directory tools. They share stories of armed guards, police gun draws, poison ivy reconnaissance, and a bag of chips that saved them from serious trouble. The conversation reveals why EDR alone won't stop ransomware, how offline backups remain the exception rather than the rule, and what security controls actually work when attackers bring custom tooling.

Impactful Moments:

00:00 - Intro
01:00 - New training courses launched
03:00 - Server 2025 breaks standard tools
05:00 - COVID facility physical penetration
07:00 - Armed guards change the game
10:00 - Police draw guns on operators
13:00 - Bag of chips saves the day
15:00 - Nighttime versus daytime physical tests
18:00 - VIP home security assessments
20:00 - 2026 threat predictions
22:00 - Why EDR doesn't stop ransomware
27:00 - Low cost ransomware simulation ROI
29:00 - Three banks in four days
32:00 - Deepfake as the new EDR

Links:

Connect with our guests – 
Greg Hatcher: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregoryhatcher2/
John Stigerwalt: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-stigerwalt-90a9b4110/
Learn more about White Knight Labs: https://www.whiteknightlabs.com

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