Peter Warmka Headshot
Report a problem with this profile
[email protected]

Peter Warmka      

Founder of Counterintelligence Institute, Former CIA Spy & Cybersecurity Consultant; Co-Host of "The Security Guy and the CIA Spy"

Peter Warmka is a former Senior Intelligence Officer with the CIA, having over 20 years of experience in breaching the security of target organizations overseas in pursuit of foreign intelligence requirements. His area of expertise, known as human hacking or social engineering, focused on the identification, assessment, and manipulation of key insiders to facilitate the breach. Such targets included the inner circles of senior government leadership, research institutions, terrorist groups, organized criminal groups, and entities involved in proliferation. In addition to his own targeting initiatives, Warmka served as a senior manager of complex operational platforms, where he mentored junior intelligence officers on their operations.

Following his retirement from public service, Warmka became obsessed with the growing incidents of data breaches and the fact that over 90 percent of them are initiated through some form of human hacking. Leveraging his area of expertise, he decided to get back into the fight by founding the Orlando-based firm Counterintelligence Institute. Today, his passion and mission are assisting city, state, and federal government entities, non-profits, academic institutions, private companies, and individuals in safeguarding their sensitive proprietary and personal data. At the core of Warmka's approach to cybersecurity risk management is focusing on how to prevent external threat actors from manipulating employees into becoming insider threats.

Warmka's security awareness training programs prioritize proactive measures that organizations can implement to avoid falling victim to data breaches. However, as a licensed investigator specializing in cybercrime, Warmka also assists clients who have fallen victim to financial fraud and extorsion.

Warmka is a frequent speaker, having delivered keynote presentations to a variety of audiences and two TEDx talks. In addition to co-hosting “The Security Guy and the CIA Spy,” Warmka has been a guest on numerous podcasts, including “RANE Insights," “Cyberwire Human Hacking,” “Paul’s Security Weekly,” “Truth Lies and Coverups,” and “The Action Catalyst.”

He has contributed to and authored numerous publications in English and Spanish on social engineering and the manipulation of insiders. His best-selling non-fiction book "Confessions of a CIA Spy - The Art of Human Hacking" was featured on Fox32. It is sought after by individuals, as well as by corporations providing it as a training resource for their personnel.

Warmka also has over 10 years of experience as a curriculum designer and specialized tradecraft instructor for various special forces units of the Department of Defense. He finds mentoring those who risk their lives in service to their country as an honor and privilege.

Warmka received a bachelor’s degree in Liberal Arts from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a master’s degree in International Business Management from Thunderbird School of Global Management. He is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), a Certified Protection Professional (CPP), and a Certified Instructor at CIA University (CIAU).

Speech Topics


"Confessions of a CIA Spy - The Art of Human Hacking"

Format: 20-90 minute keynote or training seminar.

Most successful data breaches are initiated by human hacking. Threat actors carefully select, assess, and manipulate key employees within a target organization who in turn become the “insider threat.” Advanced social engineering techniques are employed to effectively circumvent the policies, procedures and technological controls put in place to safeguard proprietary information, client data and sensitive personnel records. For over 20 years of his career with the Central Intelligence Agency, Peter developed expertise in the identification, assessment, and manipulation of insiders to breach the security of target organizations in pursuit of high value foreign intelligence. He now shares his insight to help protect organizations and employees against external threats.

This program is perfect for: Senior and midlevel management Chief security officers Chief information security officers Human resource managers Public relations managers

The audience will leave with: Why humans are so susceptible to human hacking An understanding of threat actors and their objectives How threat actors use social media platforms to identify and assess employees as potential insider candidates How insider motivations and vulnerabilities are leveraged into the design and execution of advanced social engineering techniques including Spear Phishing, Smishing, Vishing and Face-to-Face approaches The evolution and impact of Deep Fake technology in human hacking schemes Three key actionable tips to prevent falling victim to human hacking

"C-Suite - Insights into Cyber Security Management"

Format: 20-90 minute key note or training seminar

The prospect of their organization suffering a devastating data breach is becoming a growing concern among C-Suite executives worldwide. Such breaches are conducted by a variety of threat actors who design and execute increasingly more sophisticated attacks to steal information (proprietary, client data, customer records) or to conduct financial extorsion in the form of ransomware or business email compromise (BEC). Such attacks can lead to a significant loss in operations and even force the enterprise out of business. C-Suite executives can no longer view security, whether physical or cyber, as a cost accounting item, but rather, an investment in people, processes and technologies.

In this session, Peter will leverage his expertise as a former intelligence officer, to help attendees understand the mindset of threat actors and the methodologies they use to turn employees into insider threats. He will then provide tips on how the C-Suite can lead and foster a successful transformation of the organization's security awareness culture at all levels. The ultimate goal is to harden the security of enterprise forcing threat actors to move onto softer targets.

The audience will leave with: Understanding who are the external threat actors and what are their objectives Methodologies used to design and execute a variety of attacks Best practices incorporated into policies and procedures greatly diminishing successful attacks Creating a security awareness culture throughout all levels of the enterprise

"Deepfake Technology - A Fraudster's Paradise"

Format: 20-90 minute keynote or training session

Technology is neither good nor evil. Its impact on society depends upon the intentions of the beholder. Since its inception in 2017, the use of synthetic media to create Deepfakes is evolving at an explosive rate. While proponents of such technology enthusiastically embrace numerous applications for the benefit of humankind, its use by fraudsters has already resulted in several successful multi-million dollar fraud schemes.

Leveraging his expertise as a human hacker , Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) and cybercrime investigator, Peter will demonstrate how Deepfakes can easily be incorporated into advanced social engineering schemes.

This program is perfect for: Employees responsible for fraud prevention and detection Officials responsible for enterprise security Those responsible for public relations and monitoring of online reputation Business intelligence analysts

The audience will leave with: An understanding of the evolution of Deepfake technology Beneficial applications for society How deep fakes are used for deception to include financial fraud, manipulation of public opinion and reputational damage What tools are available for the detection of Deepfakes Examples of how enterprises can establish verification and authentication procedures to mitigate deep fake threats

"Taking Back Control Over Your Identity and Privacy"

Format: 20-90 minute keynote or training session

In this era of big data expansion, many people reluctantly relinquish control over their privacy allowing their identity to be transformed into a marketable binary code. While their personal information may be used to enhance a company's efficiency in marketing products and services, it can also be exploited by criminals and other threat actors for identity theft leading to devastating consequences for its victims. In 2021 alone, over 1.5 million Americans suffered identity theft resulting in 52 billion dollars in reported loses. Can you afford to become part of that statistic?

Few people realize that there are many ways they can effectively take back control over their privacy by incorporating specific settings on a variety of online applications in addition to exercising care in what they post on their social media platforms.

Leveraging his expertise as a former CIA intelligence officer and private investigator, Peter will clearly illustrate the evolution of victims who had to react to identity theft instead of proactively incorporating best practices which would have prevented them from ever happening in the first place.

This program is perfect for: Individuals who are concerned about their loss of privacy and digital security Those wanting to take back control over their identity and privacy

The audience will leave with: Understanding how big data is collected and what are its many applications Identification of threat actors and how they utilize this information for identity theft Specific procedures for changing privacy control settings on major online applications Numerous resource guides (PDF)

"Espionage 101 for International Business Travelers and their Families"

Format: 20-90 minute keynote or training seminar

U.S. Business executives and their families frequently become targets of opportunity for state intelligence services, industrial competitors and organized criminal groups when they travel overseas to high CI threat environments. Managing their public profile, deciding where to stay, who to trust and criteria for the media devices they carry are a few of the many considerations. Mishaps can lead to damage to personnel reputations, financial extorsion and/or devastating financial consequences for their firms.
As a former intelligence officer with the CIA who has travelled to over 56 countries, Peter is well versed on the methodologies utilized by these threat actors to compromise corporate executives who are typically more focused on physical security over privacy, human hacking operations and data protection. He shares and analyzes numerous case studies along with the lessons painfully learned by stakeholders.

This program is perfect for: Mid-level to senior executives from all industries who travel overseas on behalf of their company Executives and family members relocating overseas Chief of security Those responsible for the design and management of travel plans

The audience will leave with: What makes business travelers high priority targets How to manage your profile before and during travel Understanding cultural differences and loss of legal protection How family members can help protect or endanger you How to minimize opportunities for electronic data collection How to protect yourself from blackmail and extorsion schemes

Related Speakers View all


More like Peter