UC hosts cybersecurity seminar

The University of Cincinnati will offer a cybersecurity seminar on Sept. 20 titled, “Protecting your Manufacturing Environment.”

Cybersecurity is a consideration in every industry, from the largest corporations to small business and nonprofits. The number of cybersecurity-related jobs in the United States already outpaces the number of people qualified to fill them, and that demand is growing rapidly.

UC invites students and those in the university community to the free event, which is hosted by Rockwell Automation, a provider of industrial automation and information products. Registration is required and includes lunch.

During the event, several companies will share their approach on cybersecurity. A panel of company speakers will share their challenges, risks, trends, strategies to overcome threats and their journey to create a more secure enterprise.

This event highlights the critical status of the cybersecurity industry.

“There is an increasing need to protect our manufacturing environment,” said Marc Cahay, PhD, head of the department of electrical engineering and computer science. “This is a great opportunity for cybersecurity experts and non-experts to come and listen to the most recent advances in the field.”

The attendees will include representatives of industries and academia, including faculty and students. Speakers on the agenda include a representative from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Paul Orkwis, PhD, interim dean of UC's College of Engineering and Applied Science, as well as several UC professors.

Two talks will be given in the afternoon by UC faculty members: Stephen J. Smith, PhD, and Rebekah Michael from the school of information technology, and Marty Emmert, PhD, from the department of electrical engineering and computer science.

Smith and Michael will discuss the rationale for the Ohio Cyber Range, a state-wide initiative to improve cybersecurity infrastructure and provide innovative training and education to strengthen Ohio’s cyber workforce. They will also outline steps that the team is taking to mitigate security vulnerability in small businesses. Small American businesses potentially stand to lose the most — since more than 30 million small businesses in the United States do not have dedicated cybersecurity staff.

Emmert will present on hardware security and trust for cyber physical systems. Trust in electronics is critical to U.S. security. Emmert also will discuss some of his ongoing work in the field of integrated circuit design. The long-term goal of his research is the development of effective methods for assurance of cyber physical systems. Specifically, he will focus on programs and projects in the area of hardware security and trust for cyber physical systems.

UC students, faculty, staff and members of the university community interested in the future of cybersecurity are encouraged to register for this free event. For general questions about the event, please contact Marisa Ogden at Rockwell Automation.

Featured image at top: A student studies on UC campus. Photo/UC Creative Services.