Matt O’Kane Shares Real-World Cyber Incidents

24 Jun 2025

Cybersecurity resilience specialist Matt O’Kane discussed insights from actual cyber breaches in the premiere episode of Cyber Horror Stories, aired on First Focus. O’Kane serves as a prominent expert when significant cyber events occur.

O’Kane’s Expertise

O’Kane specializes in cyber resilience, incident response, and digital forensics. He explained that his work involves “helping workplaces answer questions, like, did the head of sales take the list of customers? Did the CFO sell secrets to the competition?” through examining and monitoring systems following security breaches.

Frequency of Cyber Threats

During the episode, O’Kane emphasized the persistent threat landscape. He noted that public-facing infrastructure faces constant probing, stating: “It’s happening constantly. Sometimes it’s like ten times a minute. Sometimes it’s hundreds of times a minute.”

Importance of Empathy in Response

O’Kane stressed that professionals must remember: “You’re working with a victim of crime.” He highlighted that businesses experiencing breaches display varying responses, with some “having the worst day of their life.” Effective incident response requires combining professionalism and empathy while adhering to international standards.