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166

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Nov 2026

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Making sense of the stories shaping cybersecurity, privacy, AI, and everything in between. plain.txt unpacks what matters as we navigate an increasingly complex digital landscape – for individuals, organisations, and society alike – cutting through noise to focus on what’s actually happening, and what it means in practice. Hosted by Arjun Ramachandran and Jordan Wilson-Otto, bringing a practitioner-led perspective from their work at ctrl:cyber, an Australian cybersecurity firm helping organisations manage cyber risk across the full security lifecycle.

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November 2, 2026Episode 16431 min

#164 Key to your data - Chandni Gupta on dark patterns in rent tech

Finding a home to rent is hard enough. But before you’ve even stepped through the door for an inspection, rent tech platforms may have nudged you into a paid rewards program, charged you for ID verification, and pressured you into paying to store your own data. In this episode, Arj speaks with Chandni Gupta (Deputy CEO and Digital Policy Director at the CPRC) about the findings of their new report, Key to Your Data: Behind the Rent Tech Interface . Chandni and her team investigated the application process, platform experience and privacy policies across several rent tech platforms, and uncovered a swathe of dark patterns at play. We also look at the legal landscape, including the impact of Victoria’s March 2026 rental law reforms, the proposed federal unfair trading prohibition, and whether the Privacy Act's tranche two reforms will make a difference. Chandni Gupta bio: Chandni Gupta is the Deputy CEO and Digital Policy Director of Consumer Policy Research Centre (CPRC) – Australia’s only dedicated consumer policy research organisation. She leads CPRC’s research and policy program, while also leading CPRC’s digital research stream. Her work includes exploring the consumer shift from the analogue towards the digital economy, the impact of deceptive and manipulative online design, and the key gaps that exist in consumer protections. She is also a Churchill Fellow following her research and policy work on dark patterns. Chandni’s research has been widely featured across Australian media and has been used by the Australian Government and regulators. Prior to CPRC, Chandni has worked in state and federal agencies, including the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and has worked internationally both at the United Nations and the OECD. Links Key to Your Data — Behind the Rent Tech Interface (CPRC report, September 2026) https://cprc.org.au/key-to-your-data Consumer Policy Research Centre https://cprc.org.au plain.txt Episode 156 on the OAIC's determination against Australia's largest rental technology platform 2Apply https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/this-week-in-digital-trust/id1616386683 Credits Editing and post-production by Martin Franklin (East Coast Studio) www.eastcoaststudio.com.au

October 19, 2026Episode 16332 min

#163 Untangling AI risk - a simple breakdown of what we should worry about

The public conversation about AI risk has collapsed into a single story about rogue and super-intelligent AI posing an existential threat to humanity. This is not only anxiety-producing, but is crowding out a much more productive conversation about harms that are real and happening right now. In this episode, we untangle three distinct categories of AI risk that keep getting bundled together: autonomous AI as a threat, malicious use of AI by bad actors, and the broader externalities of AI on domains like labour, privacy, copyright, mental health and the information environment. We explore how each category represents a distinct set of concerns, but also how each requires a different policy response, and the vested interests that benefit from keeping the public debate focused on one category over another. Links Article about Jacob Coxon viral post (Time) https://time.com/article/2026/09/15/ai-anthropic-researcher-quits-coxon-slowdown/ Jacob Coxon and the existential AI risk crescendo (Foreign Policy) https://foreignpolicy.com/2026/09/16/ai-risk-jacob-coxon-openai-anthropic-dario-amodei-sam-altman-t… Dario Amodei essay on pacing the frontier https://darioamodei.com/post/we-must-pace-the-frontier Article about OpenAI hacking Australian Medicare portal (ABC News) https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-09-24/ai-agent-accessed-australian-government-site-pm-says/1071890… Article about Bill Gates on AI doom (Gizmodo) https://gizmodo.com/bill-gatess-new-message-about-ai-doom-isnt-what-you-might-think-it-is-2000819208 Article about OpenAI at Australian parliamentary inquiry (Information Age) https://ia.acs.org.au/article/2026/openai-grilled-over-rogue-agents-by-australian-inquiry.html Credits Editing and post-production by Martin Franklin (East Coast Studio) www.eastcoaststudio.com.au

October 6, 202635 min

#162 Pixelated privacy - the state of online tracking and advertising with Emma Blackmore

As the government finalises its tranche 2 reforms to the Privacy Act, the Privacy Commissioner is forging ahead with a crack-down on privacy-invasive online tracking and advertising. In this episode, Jordan sits down with Emma Blackmore to decode the OAIC's regulatory focus on 'pixels', what the recent determinations against Monash IVF and Medmate mean for organisations and how they sit alongside the coming reform. Tracking tech can be complicated, but the message is simple - targeted online advertising is subject to the Privacy Act, and organisations need to review their cookie and pixel tracking settings to make sure they comply. Emma is a Principal at ctrl:cyber, and our in-house expert on privacy and digital marketing. Emma sits on the IAPP ANZ Advisory board and prior to joining ctrl, led the privacy program at Australia Post. Links OAIC's 2024 guidance on pixels and privacy https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/privacy-guidance-for-organisations-and-government-agencies/organisations/tracking-pixels-and-privacy-obligations OAIC's report on the use of tracking pixels by 50 healthcare providers https://www.oaic.gov.au/news/blog/your-life,-pixelated-how-tracking-pixels-watch-your-every-click OAIC's determinations against Monash IVF and Medmate https://www.oaic.gov.au/news/media-centre/privacy-commissioner-finds-privacy-breaches-in-third-party-tracking-pixel-investigation Australian Community Attitudes to Privacy Survey 2026 (OAIC) https://www.oaic.gov.au/engage-with-us/research-and-training-resources/research/australian-community-attitudes-to-privacy-survey/australian-community-attitudes-to-privacy-survey2026 'For Your Information', the 2008 Australian Law Reform Commission report https://www.alrc.gov.au/publication/for-your-information-australian-privacy-law-and-practice-alrc-report-108/ Our old episode on targeted advertising as the grand bargain or original sin of the internet (episode #75) https://open.spotify.com/episode/1H0wBEoktwukgt6u5NtKK1?si=1b4ba7f610314f9e Credits Editing and post-production by Martin Franklin (East Coast Studio) www.eastcoaststudio.com.au

September 21, 2026Episode 16136 min

#161 'Pub test for privacy' a step closer - breaking down Australia's new draft privacy laws

The Australian Government has announced plans for the next stage of reforms to Australia's Privacy Act. In this episode, we explain what changes are proposed in the exposure draft Privacy Amendment (Personal Data Protection) Bill 2026, and what it means for organisations. In sum, the reforms represent a real philosophical shift. The centrepiece is a new fair and reasonable test, which we have previously called a "pub test for privacy". We also talk about the implications of a broadened definition of personal information, stronger consent standards, restrictions on data trading, a right of erasure, new sensitive information categories, and uplifted data breach response expectations. Links Exposure draft https://consultations.ag.gov.au/rights-and-protections/privacy-reform/ Mainstream news coverage (ABC News) https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-31/attorney-general-says-no-ban-on-smart-glasses-draft-privacy-… Article on Privacy Act reforms (IAPP) https://iapp.org/news/a/australia-publishes-initial-proposals-for-second-wave-of-privacy-act-reforms Article on marketing/media industry response (Mi3) https://www.mi-3.com.au/01-09-2026/most-significant-overhaul-australian-privacy-law-more-decade-fai… Analysis of fair and reasonable test (The Conversation) https://theconversation.com/australia-is-eyeing-a-world-first-fair-and-reasonable-test-for-data-col… Credits Editing and post-production by Martin Franklin (East Coast Studio) www.eastcoaststudio.com.au

September 8, 2026Episode 16026 min

#160 Much harm, but no foul? Breaking down the privacy regulator's Qantas data breach ruling

Typically, when we're discussing the lessons to be learned about a cyber or privacy incident, we’re working backwards from a negative ruling. In this episode, we discuss the OAIC's favourable ruling about Qantas' mid-2025 cyber-related data breach that affected millions of customers. While the OAIC's investigation largely clears Qantas of wrongdoing, the report highlights plenty of lessons for organisations seeking to understand what the regulator expects when it comes to taking "reasonable steps" to protect personal information. Links Full report into preliminary inquiries of Qantas (OAIC) https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/privacy-assessments-and-decisions/privacy-decisions/Investigation-i… OAIC media statement https://www.oaic.gov.au/news/media-centre/privacy-commissioner-completes-preliminary-inquiries-into… Media article at time of incident (ABC News) https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-02/qantas-cyber-attack-significant-data-stolen/105484720 Article about summary of OAIC findings (Mi3) https://www.mi-3.com.au/17-07-2026/qantas-cleared-privacy-law-breach-2025-data-incident OAIC's Australian Clinical Labs ruling (OAIC) https://www.oaic.gov.au/news/media-centre/australian-clinical-labs-ordered-to-pay-penalties-in-rela… Credits Editing and post-production by Martin Franklin (East Coast Studio) www.eastcoaststudio.com.au

August 20, 2026Episode 15931 min

#159 Cyber breakout - What frontier AI means for cyber risk (part two)

*** This is part two of our two-part series on how frontier AI is reshaping cyber risk. See part one here: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/158-cyber-breakout-what-frontier-ai-means-for-cyber/id1616386… *** Over recent weeks a wave of disclosures have lit up the technology industry about the prospect of "rogue AI". OpenAI first revealed a frontier model had broken out of its sandbox during a test and hacked into Hugging Face's network. Shortly after, Anthropic surfaced three similar incidents from its own test logs. Meta and the UK AI Security Institute admitted similar observations, while a Melbourne man made the news after claiming his AI agent hacked his gym's booking system to move him up the waitlist by cancelling someone else's reservation. We discuss what this all means, including what the cyber security industry has made of these incidents and the lessons they are drawing about how to stay safe from autonomous AI. We also deconstruct the language and framing being used to describe these events - with phrases like "cheating" and "going rogue" investing AI with a sense of agency. The episode closes with a view of how these incidents much shape the broader public policy debate about proprietary vs open-weight models . Links Article about OpenAI / Hugging Face containment incident (TechCrunch) https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/10/openai-agent-escaped-sandbox-hacked-hugging-face/ OpenAI disclosure https://openai.com/index/hugging-face-model-evaluation-security-incident/ OpenAI's technical recounting of the incident at Black Hat https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87DyyMV0kCY Anthropic disclosure https://www.anthropic.com/research/containment-disclosure UK AI Security Institute disclosure https://www.aisi.gov.uk Article about gym incident (ABC News) https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2026/andrew-ai-agent-gym-booking-hack/ Marcus Hutchins on agentic AI attacks at Black Hat https://www.linkedin.com/posts/malwaretech_one-of-the-interesting-takeaways-from-black-share-749306… Open letter on open weight model access https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/corporate-responsibility/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/open-weight-mod… plain.txt Episode 158 — Part 1: Frontier AI and the pressure on cyber fundamentals https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/this-week-in-digital-trust/id1616386683 Credits Editing and post-production by Martin Franklin (East Coast Studio) www.eastcoaststudio.com.au

August 11, 2026Episode 15333 min

#158 Cyber breakout - What frontier AI means for cyber risk (part one)

*** This is the first part of a two-part series on how frontier AI is reshaping cyber risk. *** In recent months the cyber security industry has been grappling with a key question: how do highly capable frontier AI models change the threat environment? In this episode we break this question down by looking at how AI has affected the cat and mouse game between attackers and defenders, and the operational reality facing most organisations. In turns out that, while the technologies behind this disruption are undoubtedly advanced, many of the lessons for businesses are pretty old school. In part two we'll explore the growing coverage of so-called "autonomous AI security incidents". Links Anthropic - Project Glasswing overview https://www.anthropic.com/glasswing UK AI Security Institute independent evaluation of frontier AI cyber capabilities https://www.aisi.gov.uk/blog/our-evaluation-of-claude-mythos-previews-cyber-capabilities Mozilla vulnerability findings using Mythos (Wired) https://www.wired.com/story/anthropic-claude-ai-model-mozilla-firefox-vulnerabilities/ Why AI has not yet meant more hacks (Risky Business podcast) https://risky.biz APRA letter to regulated entities on frontier AI and cyber risk https://www.apra.gov.au/news-and-publications/apra-letter-industry-artificial-intelligence-ai ASIC letter to licensees and directors about cyber risk https://download.asic.gov.au/media/xhrf1w0e/26-092mr-open-letter-to-afs-licensees-and-market-participants.pdf Trump executive order https://www.cnbc.com/2026/06/02/trump-executive-order-ai.html Credits Editing and post-production by Martin Franklin (East Coast Studio) www.eastcoaststudio.com.au

July 30, 2026Episode 15729 min

#157 AI pendulum - How Pope Leo, Trump and the Australian public have swung sentiment

This week we check in on what we've previously called the "AI pendulum" - the swing between a pro-safety, pro-regulation instinct that marked AI conversations a couple of years ago to the hands-off, innovation-first mindset dominating the last 12 months. Recent events indicate the pendulum may be swinging back towards a more cautious and considered view of AI. The most striking incursion came from the Vatican, with Pope Leo XIV issuing "Magnifica Humanitas" a 42,000-word encyclical on the moral challenges of AI. We also explore the Trump Administration's recent executive orders and other moves to bring more government scrutiny to frontier models, and new research from the Tech Policy Design Institute that shows strong support by Australians for AI regulation. Links Full encyclical — Magnifica Humanitas https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiv/en/encyclicals/documents/20260515-magnifica-humanitas.html Article about AI encyclical (Time) https://time.com/article/2026/05/25/pope-leo-encyclical-ai-magnifica-humanitas/ Analysis of AI encyclical (Brookings) https://www.brookings.edu/articles/understanding-pope-leos-ai-encyclical/ Article about Trump executive order (CNBC) https://www.cnbc.com/2026/06/02/trump-executive-order-ai.html TPDi report — Earning Trust: Unlocking AI Adoption for Australians https://techpolicy.au/news/earning-trust TPDi — AI Agency Tool and 2025 Australia AI Agency Assessment https://techpolicy.au Credits Editing and post-production by Martin Franklin (East Coast Studio) www.eastcoaststudio.com.au

July 13, 2026Episode 15628 min

#156 False choice, real harm - how power asymmetries and dark patterns erode privacy

In this episode we break down the OAIC's determination against Australia's largest rental technology platform ("RentTech") 2Apply. After a year-long investigation, Privacy Commissioner Carly Kind found that 2Apply collected personal information far beyond what was reasonably necessary, and via means deemed unfair. The ruling is another example of the Commissioner's more assertive enforcement posture. Noting the challenges in the housing market facing renters, we unpack how this determination might also matter more broadly to any situation where there's an imbalance of power. We also explore how the ruling applies the concept of "online choice architecture", in which the design of digital platforms can shape the decisions people make. Links OAIC media release https://www.oaic.gov.au/news/media-centre/renttech-platforms-must-stop-unfair-and-excessive-personal-information-collection,-says-privacy-commissioner Full determination https://www.oaic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0022/263254/IRE-Pty-Ltd-Privacy-2026-AICmr-24.pdf Reporting on poor real estate agent cybersecurity (Josh Taylor, The Guardian) https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/feb/02/real-estate-agents-in-australia-using-apps-that-leave-millions-of-lease-documents-at-risk-digital-researcher-says Previous plain.txt interview with Commissioner Carly Kind https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/151-trust-is-built-here-privacy-awareness-week-with/id16163866... Credits Editing and post-production by Martin Franklin (East Coast Studio) www.eastcoaststudio.com.au

June 29, 2026Episode 15538 min

#155 Australia's AI moment - Lee Hickin, National AI Centre

Australia is one of the world's top per capita users of AI, but outside of large enterprises many businesses aren't using it. In this episode, we speak with Lee Hickin, Executive Director of the National AI Centre (bio below) about what it will take to close the gap between awareness of AI and safe and confident adoption. We explore current attitudes to AI in Australia, what the NAIC's data says about adoption across different sectors, and where Australia should position itself in the "AI risk vs AI opportunity" narrative. Lee also shares his view of why getting this moment right matters not just for improving productivity, but to enhance Australia's place in the global economy. BIO: Lee Hickin, Executive Director, Australian National AI Centre. Lee has over 30 years’ experience in the technology industry, having been in technical, sales and business development roles. Most recently he was the CTO for Microsoft ANZ and then lead the Asia region for Microsoft’s global Responsible AI team. Lee has worked across the UK, Asia, and Australia, before joining the Federal Government. In addition to his time at Microsoft, Lee led the Internet of Things team for Amazon Web Services in Asia Pacific, he was a CISSP security architect with RSA Security and worked at both Tivoli and IBM as a software engineer. During his time in industry, Lee has supported Governments around the world as an independent contributor; having been a member of the Singapore AI-Verify Board and a founding member of the NSW AI Assurance Committee. Today Lee leads the Australian National AI Centre (NAIC), with a mission to enable and support Australian Industry and society in its adoption of and acceleration through AI technology and services. He has a clear focus on the need for consistent and appropriate responsible safety mechanisms to support AI, balanced with the need to empower Australians with the confidence and trust in the positive and transformative potential of AI. Lee brings the importance of technical understanding combined with the need for clear and unambiguous language as we help shape a future where AI will be a powerful enabler of productivity, growth and society broadly. Links Lee Hickin — Executive Director, National AI Centre https://www.industry.gov.au/national-artificial-intelligence-centre/about-national-ai-centre/lee-hic... National AI Centre https://www.ai.gov.au /about/about-national-ai-centre" target="_blank" class="redactor-autoparser-object"> https://www.ai.gov.au /about/about-national-ai-centre Australia's central AI resource platform https://www.ai.gov.au Australia's National AI Plan https://www.industry.gov.au/publications/national-ai-plan US export controls force Anthropic to disable Fable 5 and Mythos 5 globally — what happened (CSIS) https://www.csis.org/analysis/department-commerce-restricted-access-anthropics-latest-models-what-co... Global implications of the White House export controls on Anthropic (IAPP) https://iapp.org/news/a/the-global-implications-of-the-white-houses-export-controls-on-anthropic Expanding AI sovereignty to AI agency (TPDi) https://techpolicy.au/aiagency Safe AI Adoption Model (SAAM) https://www.saam.com.au/ Credits Editing and post-production by Martin Franklin (East Coast Studio) ⁠www.eastcoaststudio.com.au⁠