Cybersecurity

As cybersecurity continues to concern state governments, many have turned to task forces to address issues such as ransomware, phishing and other threats. But what have they accomplished so far?

Hardening its network after a cyber attack in fall 2020, the Illinois college is investing in more network surveillance, a firewall review, off-site and air-gap backups, server updates and other measures.

The CyberPatriot Camp, hosted by Calhoun Community College's Decatur campus in Alabama, teaches regional high school students to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities in Linux and Microsoft Windows operating systems.

Robeson Community College in North Carolina hosted middle and high school students last week in a camp that challenged them to correct security issues and change passwords and policies on user accounts.

In a co-authored report about a 2021 ransomware attack, former administrators of Broward County Public Schools in Florida shared information with Safer School Solutions that they had withheld from the public.

The University of South Florida's Global and National Security Institute will train state and local government employees, as well as businesses, to defend critical infrastructure from cyber threats.

The botnet — a network of infected devices working together, typically for malicious purposes — compromised everything from smart garage door openers to routers to audio/video streaming devices to phones to computers.

Cyber insurance won’t ever be “cheap” again, says Cysurance’s Kirsten Bay. But insurance firms might make it more attainable with ways to monitor clients for good cyber behavior and adjust limits accordingly.

In the ongoing quest to improve cybersecurity for North Carolina’s government and its residents, Chief Risk Officer Rob Main says a better workforce pipeline would take his agency to the next level.

With ransomware and other cyber threats increasingly targeted at school systems, New York-based risk intelligence company Flashpoint is offering its risk management and cybersecurity platform to K-12 school districts.

Available on campus or online, a Bachelor of Science program aims to help meet high demand for professionals in the field. UW-Stout also offers a minor, two certificates and two concentrations related to cybersecurity.

The new degree program will start in fall 2023 to meet growing demand for computer science professionals. The number of jobs in the cybersecurity industry is expected to grow by more than 30 percent in the next decade.

Former CISA Director Chris Krebs, Color of Change President Rashad Robinson and journalist Katie Couric discussed the societal threat of dis-, mis- and malinformation as the RSA Conference concluded last week.

A recent surge in cyber attacks on ag companies during critical planting and harvest seasons has prompted a warning from the FBI and efforts within the industry to develop stronger individual and shared defenses.

Cybersecurity programs such as the online one at Western Governors University have seen growing interest from military personnel looking for flexible IT training, either for their current roles or after their service.

NIST’s National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence has released the first of several preliminary drafts outlining ways that organizations can implement zero-trust architectures.

Two North Dakota students received recognition for their performance solving real-world problems in a free online cybersecurity training program with 45,000 other high school students across the country.

The university will use funding from the state and industry partners to establish a new laboratory for its FIREStarter program, with hardware and software to accommodate hands-on training and future research.