March 10, 2005
Purdue computer symposium confronts network vulnerability
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – A two-day Purdue symposium will offer a chance to hear several national experts discuss one of the country’s most pressing security problems: the vulnerability of our computer networks.
The Security in Motion symposium will illustrate the impact of network vulnerability on legal, social and technological frameworks, and will show how this could provide new business opportunities in the computer and service industries. The symposium takes place March 23-24 in the South Ballroom of the Purdue Memorial Union and the Stewart Center and runs concurrently with the e-Enterprise Center's Energizing Enterprise 2005 conference on March 22-23. Registration for the Security in Motion symposium is required and is available online or call (800) 359-2968.
The meeting is the sixth annual information security symposium held by CERIAS, Purdue’s Center for Education and Research in Information Assurance and Security. Elisa Bertino, the center’s research director, said the symposium topic has broad significance for the increasingly digital world.
"America's computer networks and information infrastructures are not safe," said Bertino, who is also a professor of computer science in Purdue’s School of Science. "Privacy of personal information entrusted to computer systems is becoming an important concern today for many citizens. The symposium is the place to be if you want to learn how to help solve the problem."
Speakers at this symposium will outline several major weaknesses in America's computer networks, including those that millions of citizens use every day. The speakers will also outline ways to confront those weaknesses and will debate how to balance between the efficient delivery of citizen services and common defense and citizen rights to privacy. Featured speakers include:
- Deborah Daniels, U.S. Assistant Attorney General,
- Becky Skillman, Indiana Lt. Governor,
- Eugene Spafford, CERIAS director and presidential adviser on computer security.
The symposium will also showcase more than 50 ongoing research projects and experts from academia, industry and government. Topics range from the high-level, such as building assurable software and architectures, to the specific practicalities of managing individuals' identities with biometric and digital tools. Researchers will also present progress in cyber and object forensics.
Speakers and panelists will explore technology's impact on maintaining the difficult equilibrium between society's need to preserve order and reduce uncertainty and an individual’s desire to protect privacy. The complete symposium agenda is available online.
Concurrent with the CERIAS symposium, Purdue's third annual Energizing Enterprise 2005 conference on March 22-24 will showcase the university's research and emerging technologies in health-care delivery, homeland security, and product lifecycle management. The conference will feature panel discussions with university and industry speakers in addition to networking opportunities and will also take place at the Purdue Memorial Union and Stewart Center. The conference is free and open to the public; required registration is available online.
Featured speakers include Lee Hamilton, former member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana and vice chairman of the 9/11 Commission; and Gino Santini, Eli Lilly and Co. senior vice president for corporate strategy and policy. The title of Santini’s talk is "Principles for Health Care Reform."
The e-Enterprise tracks and CERIAS symposium will come together at 1:30 p.m. on March 23 in the Memorial Union's North and South Ballrooms for a joint poster session of relevant research from Purdue and other universities.
Registration for the CERIAS symposium is available online or by calling (765) 494-2402 or (800) 359-2968 extension 92B. Cost is $60 for the general public and $30 for CERIAS sponsors, affiliates and board members. Purdue faculty, students and staff can attend free.
For further information on Energizing Enterprise 2005, contact Barbara Doremire, e-Enterprise Center administrative assistant, (765) 494-3153, bjd@purdue.edu.
For further information on the CERIAS symposium, contact Jennifer Kurtz, CERIAS manager of strategic relations and communications, (765) 494-7806, jkurtz@cerias.purdue.edu.
Writer: Chad Boutin, (765) 494-2081, cboutin@purdue.edu
Sources: Elisa Bertino, (765) 496-2399, (765) 497-9969, bertino@cerias.purdue.edu
Jennifer Kurtz (765) 494-7806, jkurtz@cerias.purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
Note to Journalists: Registration fees for the conference can be waived for journalists by contacting Jennifer Kurtz at (765) 494-7608 or jakurtz@cerias.purdue.edu
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