About Pithy Security (And Why I Created It)
Hey. My name’s Mike D. (AKA .)
I’m an IT nerd, editor, and teacher, born and raised in Greater Boston, Massachusetts.
If you’re here, you probably already know that cybersecurity feels like drinking from a firehose. Every day brings new vulnerabilities, new threats, and new headlines screaming that everything is about to be compromised.
And honestly? They’re not wrong. But the problem isn’t that security is moving fast. The problem is that most cybersecurity news is either fear-mongering designed to sell products or buried in technical jargon that requires a CISSP to decode.
I created Pithy Security because I got tired of watching smart, capable security professionals fall behind simply because they didn’t have time to sort through the noise.
My Background (And Why I’m Qualified To Help)
I’ve spent my career at the intersection of technology, security, and education.
Multiple science degrees (because I’m a nerd who couldn’t stop learning).
Taught over 30,000+ students from 140+ countries.
Worked IT and security for some of the largest organizations on Earth, for years, handling sensitive infrastructure and real-world threats.
I’ve seen every side of the security world: the cutting edge research, the corporate incident response chaos, the “secret” stuff, and the everyday professional just trying to keep their systems safe. That perspective matters because I know how to translate complex security developments into intelligence that actually makes sense.
What Pithy Security Actually Is
Every Friday morning, I send out a 3-minute newsletter that covers:
✅ The Most Critical Security Stories That Actually Matter – Not every vulnerability deserves your attention. I do the filtering so you don’t have to.
✅ Plain English Explanations – No fear-mongering. No vendor hype. Just clear insights into what’s happening and why it matters to your organization and career.
✅ Zero-Day Intelligence Without The Panic – When critical vulnerabilities drop, you get the facts: the risk, the impact, and what to do about it.
✅ Strategic Context – Understanding what happened is good. Understanding what it means for your security posture is invaluable.
Why It’s Free (And Always Will Be)
I believe every security professional deserves access to clear, honest threat intelligence. Not just people who can afford expensive threat feeds or have time to become full-time analysts.
Pithy Security is my contribution to keeping security professionals informed without gatekeeping knowledge behind paywalls or vendor relationships.
The core briefing? That’s yours. Free. Forever.
Pithy Security is read by security pros, hackers, IT nerds, and PhD-level security experts who are way smarter than me. You’ll be in good company if you join. And it’s 100% free.
The Philosophy Behind The Name
“Pithy” means brief and full of meaning. “Security” is what we protect every single day.
You don’t need to read 47 articles to stay informed. You just need the right 3 minutes of intelligence.
That’s what this newsletter delivers.
Who This Is For
Pithy Security readers include security professionals and IT leaders, penetration testers and compliance officers, system administrators and curious hackers.
If you’re responsible for security but overwhelmed by the information overload, you’re in the right place.
If you want to stay ahead of threats without sacrificing hours of your life to endless security blogs, you’re in the right place.
If you believe threat intelligence should be accessible, not locked behind complexity or enterprise pricing, you’re definitely in the right place.
Ready To Join?
Every Friday, you get a 100% free cybersecurity intelligence briefing. No overwhelm. No panic. Just 3 minutes of clarity.
Pithy Security is read by security pros, hackers, IT nerds, and PhD-level security experts who are way smarter than me. You’ll be in good company if you join. And it’s 100% free.
Or visit PithySecurity.Substack.com/subscribe to get started.
