October 4, 2007
Purdue information technology to mark Cybersecurity Awareness Month with series
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Nationally known academic and industry experts and a Purdue University student who was sued by the Recording Industry Association of America will speak during a series of lectures to mark October National Cybersecurity Awareness Month.The IT Networks and Security unit of the Office of Information Technology at Purdue has organized the series of forums that will take place on Wednesdays, Oct. 10, 17, 24 and 31. Sessions will take place from 9-11 a.m. in Stewart Center's Fowler Hall on each of those days. The speeches are free and open to the public.
A "Security Halloween" contest also will be part of the final lecture on Oct. 31. Participants will dress in cybersecurity-related costumes, and prizes will be awarded.
"We just want to increase people's awareness of Internet usage and doing it in a secure way," said Cherry Delaney, outreach coordinator for security awareness for the Office of Information Technology. "The best way people can protect their personal information on the Internet is by being educated on how this information is used or abused. We want to provide information on safe ways to use the Internet and how not to become a victim of identity fraud or even worse crimes."
On Oct. 10, the topic is "Internet Riding Safely." Scott Ksander, Purdue's chief information security officer and executive director of networks and security, and Pablo Malevenda, associate dean of students, will discuss ways to safely use the Internet. They will talk about appropriate information to share on social networking sites such as Facebook.
Neil Daswani, an engineer from Google, also will discuss how engineers can go about learning what they need to know to prevent significant data security vulnerabilities.
"Cybercrime and Copyright Infringement" is the topic of the Oct. 17 session. The Purdue student, whose name is being withheld, will talk about her experiences from being sued by the Recording Industry Association of America. The student will be introduced only as Amber.
In an effort to enforce music copyright, the association is harvesting Internet addresses of computers that allegedly offered music for others to download illegally. It then is asking Internet service providers to forward letters to alleged violators offering the option of paying a settlement fee or facing possible legal action.
Chris Burgess, a senior security adviser and chief scientist for CISCO Systems Inc., will speak on intellectual property strategies, and Marcus Rogers, a Purdue professor of computer and information technology, will speak on the law and cyberforensics.
On Oct. 24, the discussion is "Future Destinations: Trends in Technology." Ed Delp, the Silicon Valley Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and professor of biomedical engineering at Purdue, will speak on the new trends in technology that will be seen in the next years. George Heron, a vice president and chief scientist for McAfee Inc., a company that specializes in intrusion prevention and security risk management, also will speak.
The series concludes on Oct. 31 with "Destination Unknown." Gerry McCartney, vice president for information technology and chief information officer, will speak on what higher education might look like in the year 2020.
Jim Bush, (765) 494-2077, jsbush@purdue.edu
Source: Cherry Delaney, (765) 496-1288, cdelaney@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
To the News Service home page