Pick My Brain with Alan Jones 
About Cole Cornford
Cole Cornford is founder and CEO of Galah Cyber, an Australian application security consultancy he started in 2021 after roles at the Australian Taxation Office and Westpac, where he worked in AppSec. He holds a Bachelor of Information Technology from the University of Newcastle. Cole is a regular OWASP contributor, having worked on its XSS Cheat Sheet rewrite, and hosts the Secured by Galah Cyber podcast, interviewing Australian security practitioners. He is a frequent speaker at BSides and AISA conferences on application security and developer-focused security communication.
- Talks about
- Startup Lessons, AI, Founder Journey, Product
Behind the microphone.
Also in conversation.
2 episodes
Start hereCole Cornford Discusses Bootstrapping and Balancing Business with Family LifeHis founder story: how he started and bootstrapped Galah Cyber, before the security-focused episodes.
Pick My Brain with Alan Jones 
Unfunded with Joan Westenberg Cole Cornford Discusses Bootstrapping and Balancing Business with Family Life
Go straight to the good bits.
Key moments from Cole Cornford on Protecting Startup Attack Surfaces | Galah Cyber.
- 1:40Cole’s childhood dream: video games, Team Fortress, and eSports sponsorship
- 5:22Why Galah Cyber’s mascot is a pink galah (and not a scary hawk or snake)
- 7:36The three buyer journeys in cybersecurity: proactive, reactive, and compliance-driven
- 9:29What “attack surface” actually means, minus the jargon
- 10:08Who counts as a “threat actor”? From clumsy insiders to international hackers
- 12:07The overlooked risks: protecting marketing funnels and payment channels
- 14:20Why adding friction to payments can stop scams
- 16:09The opportunity cost of over-investing in security too early
- 17:28What ISO and SOC 2 certifications mean (and when founders should care)
- 19:25When enterprise customers will demand compliance
In their own words.
“Unless you intentionally block out parts of your life to live your life, you will fill it with work.”
The path so far.
- Now
Founder & CEO · Galah Cyber
- From 2017
Application security · Westpac
- Until 2017
Graduate · Australian Taxation Office
Sources: newcastle.edu.au
Galah Cyber on Day One
Galah Cyber is an Australian application security consultancy founded in 2021 by Cole Cornford.
1 person · 3 episodes
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Spot something wrong? Suggest a correctionUpdated 29 October 2026
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