A key takeaway from Dr. Gary: "Don't trust, verify!"
This year鈥檚 CyberBay Summit was held March 11th-13th at the JW Marriott Tampa Water Street. Keynote speakers included Jen Easterly, former Director of CISA, and Rachel Wilson, head of Data Security. Dr. Gary (Scuba) of the USF School of Information presented alongside Dr. Linda Nhon and Dr. Tad Schnaufer from the Global and National Security Institute at USF. Their presentation, 鈥淭he Cyber Foxhole: Every Citizen Holds a Position on the Next War鈥檚 Frontline鈥 discussed cyberattacks and how each of us can be better prepared to prevent them through cybersecurity awareness and practices. Dr. Gary discussed the importance of Digital Hygiene, which is a set of routine habits that help keep your 鈥渄igital house鈥 secure. These habits include managing and keep track of your accounts and data you leave online, your digital footprint.
Cybersecurity preparedness is not just a technical solution. Given the continued advancements in cyberattacks on critical infrastructure, every citizen should have a 鈥渉urricane prep list鈥 that is maintained year-round rather than seasonally. At the summit, leading cybersecurity professionals reviewed emergency preparedness pamphlets from countries such as Sweden and Poland that explicitly include cyber considerations, and agreed that the United States would benefit from a similar emergency preparedness pamphlet for its citizens.
The overarching goal is to be prepared for any type of emergency鈥攏atural or manmade. From a cyber perspective, maintaining strong personal cyber hygiene is essential. The importance of not clicking on links or opening attachments unless you are absolutely certain they are safe cannot be emphasized enough. This summit aims to remind us all that we are on the front lines of cyber warfare, especially those who work in critical infrastructure. Each of us must do our part to protect ourselves and our fellow citizens.