Author Archives: Kacy Zurkus

Larger enterprises have the resources to not only afford the technology needed to grow in the digital age, but they also have the budget and manpower to build security into their overall ecosystems.

Does the K-12 education sector have the means to do the same? As the use of technology becomes more prevalent in public schools, will collecting more data potentially increase the cybersecurity risks for the K-12 sector?

Earlier this fall, the Center for Data Innovation released a report, Building a Data-Driven Education System in the United States, in which they said 93 percent of teachers are regularly using digital tools to assist classroom instruction in some capacity.

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There’s a new CISO in town, and that person is now bridging the gap between technology and risk. Toward that end, many CSOs and CISOs are starting to report to the chief risk officer rather than the CIO. 

The shift has not been without some controversy, with the main objection being that no matter how they spin it, technology is still at the heart of the job. So what are the pros and cons of this change? 

“It’s as much a shift in mindset and language as organizational reporting,” said Steven Grossman, vice president of strategy and enablement at Bay Dynamics. The evolution of the CISO came from the guy managing firewalls, then it was a position that was for managing security, protecting system information as a critical part of business.

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While the San Francisco 49ers are leading the NFL in defense, the New Orleans Saints currently hold the number one slot for total offense. In the overall league rankings, though, neither of those two teams rank in the top 10. 

What’s the takeaway? Winning isn’t strictly about strong offense or impenetrable defense. NFL league leaders advance to the top because they know how to balance the two; they know how to play the game.

To address the growing number of attacks on the US government and private sector systems, President-elect Donald Trump’s cybersecurity plan aims to, “Develop the offensive cyber capabilities we need to deter attacks by both state and non-state actors and, if necessary, to respond appropriately.”

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While the San Francisco 49ers are leading the NFL in defense, the New Orleans Saints currently hold the number one slot for total offense. In the overall league rankings, though, neither of those two teams rank in the top 10. 

What’s the takeaway? Winning isn’t strictly about strong offense or impenetrable defense. NFL league leaders advance to the top because they know how to balance the two; they know how to play the game.

To address the growing number of attacks on the US government and private sector systems, President-elect Donald Trump’s cybersecurity plan aims to, “Develop the offensive cyber capabilities we need to deter attacks by both state and non-state actors and, if necessary, to respond appropriately.”

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

While the San Francisco 49ers are leading the NFL in defense, the New Orleans Saints currently hold the number one slot for total offense. In the overall league rankings, though, neither of those two teams rank in the top 10. 

What’s the takeaway? Winning isn’t strictly about strong offense or impenetrable defense. NFL league leaders advance to the top because they know how to balance the two; they know how to play the game.

To address the growing number of attacks on the US government and private sector systems, President-elect Donald Trump’s cybersecurity plan aims to, “Develop the offensive cyber capabilities we need to deter attacks by both state and non-state actors and, if necessary, to respond appropriately.”

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CAMBRIDGE — Government agencies, law enforcement, security experts, and businesses joined IBM Security as they opened the industry’s first commercial Cyber Range at their new global headquarters in Cambridge, Mass., today.

The range is a live operational environment where they kicked off a simulation, a fictional Fortune 500 company is running in real time. The goal for those who visit the lab is for them to engage in an experience that feels as real as possible, said Caleb Barlow, vice president of strategy at IBM Security.

With a petabyte of storage space, they are able to use real weaponized malware and cyber attacks in the air-gapped cyber range. Joe Provost, threat simulation and modeling, IBM Security, said, “Participants immerse themselves in a training scenario or a series of scenarios using all the same malware from enemies or adversaries to prepare them for crisis state.” 

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If you’ve seen Macbeth, you know the tragedy of Lady Macbeth who realizes in the final act that, “What’s done cannot be undone.” Overcome with guilt, she is unable to erase the image of blood stained on her hands, and she commits suicide. 

What makes Macbeth one of the most famed tragedies of Shakespeare is that he and his wife made rash decisions without thinking about the consequences of their actions. They didn’t plan ahead. 

For centuries, audiences have loved to hate Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. They were ambitious, but their blind ambition proved to be their tragic flaw. Certainly, the tech industry must be able to relate to these human weaknesses in the wake of Mirai and Dyn.

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Boston—Cybersecurity experts and those new to the space gathered together at the Federal Reserve Bank to join the Advanced Cyber Security Center (ACSC) for Massachusetts Cybersecurity 2.0: Preparing for the Next Wave of Cyber Challenges.

Whether it’s securing self-driving cars, cloud computing, or exposing criminals in the Darknet, the industry will face many challenges in the near and distant future. Cybersecurity leaders across all sectors are struggling to understand the most effective ways to share threat data without creating additional harm.

So, the focus of this year’s ACSC conference highlighted the value of using information sharing as a means of helping others to defend against malicious cyber activity.

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