No Password Required Podcast Episode 64 — DeMarcus Williams

No Password Required Podcast Episode 64 — DeMarcus Williams

From No Password Required by Cyber Florida

September 29, 2025 · 43 min · Episode 64

About this episode

DeMarcus Williams discusses his journey from cyber competitions to becoming a senior security engineer at Starbucks.

DeMarcus Williams — Starbucks’ Security Pro Went from Cyber Competitions to Corporate Red Teaming DeMarcus Williams, a senior security engineer at Starbucks, has built a career defined by creativity, intuition, and persistence. With roles at the U.S. Department of Defense, AWS/Amazon, and now Starbucks, he specializes in offensive security, red teaming, and adversary emulation. In this episode, DeMarcus joins Jack Clabby of Carlton Fields, P.A. and Cyber Florida’s Sarina Gandy (guesting hosting) to share how his love of video games first sparked his cybersecurity journey—and how competitions like the Southeast Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (SECCDC) cemented his path. DeMarcus opens up about overcoming imposter syndrome, the unique work-life balance he’s found at Starbucks, and why half of his red teaming comes down to gut instinct. He shares the difference between penetration testing and red teaming, what it’s like preparing for full-scale global operations, and the hacker mindset that still kicks in whenever he walks into a Starbucks café. In the Lifestyle Polygraph segment, Sarina poses the ultimate face-off: what’s the bigger moment—the walk-up to a boxing ring or to…

People in this episode

Host: Jack Clabby

Guest: DeMarcus Williams

Topics covered

  • cybersecurity
  • red teaming
  • offensive security
  • video games
  • imposter syndrome

Keywords

  • Southeast Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition
  • penetration testing
  • hacker mindset

Mentioned in this episode

Products: Starbucks

Books & works: Capture the Flag

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