Threat Vector | The Kill Switch for AI Agents

dmoulton — Thu, 22 Jan 2026 17:00:00 GMT

Carey Frey, Chief Security Officer at TELUS, joins Threat Vector host David Moulton to tackle the most overlooked security challenge in the AI revolution: identity. With 20+ years protecting everything from Canada's Communication Security Establishment to one of North America's largest telecommunications companies, Carey brings hard-won wisdom about why identity isn't just important—it's the foundation that determines whether agentic AI becomes a force multiplier or an attack surface disaster.

You'll learn:

Why 95% of organizations haven't thought about AI agent identity (and what happens when they deploy anyway)
The single data layer CISOs need to build before AI agents can operate safely at scale
How threat actors have already abandoned malware for something far simpler—and why AI makes it exponentially worse
What "delegated authority" means for AI agents and why Gmail's EA permissions model points the way forward
The maturity model that tells you if your identity foundation will crumble under agentic AI

Carey leads security programs protecting TELUS's global assets while delivering managed cybersecurity services to 450+ customers across Canada. As a member of the Security Innovation Network (SINet), he co-authored practitioner guidance defining what "AI-native identity fabric" actually means—and why solving identity before deploying agents isn't optional. His insights bridge 20 years of government intelligence work with real-world enterprise security at telecommunications scale.

Read Carey's work on identity and AI:

The AI Revolution: Identity Will Unleash Its Full Power - Carey's deep dive on Medium
SINet Identity Working Group Strategic Guide - The practitioner guidance referenced throughout this episode

This episode is essential listening if you're: evaluating AI agent platforms, struggling with fragmented IAM systems across cloud and on-prem, implementing Zero Trust for non-human identities, or trying to understand why identity suddenly became the CISO's #1 priority after being the "third rail" for decades.

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Threat Vector | The Kill Switch for AI Agents