Free event is open to the public, preregistration required
In the wake of the Equifax breach, there’s no denying the fact: Technology has accelerated so quickly in recent years, ordinary people and businesses often feel uncertain how to keep up — and there’s always the worrisome thought that criminals are ahead of the game. Do you know how to keep your personal and financial information safe? What about identity theft?
A free seminar sponsored by Seward County Community College Business & Industry, the Liberal Area Chamber of Commerce, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security offers answers. Two sessions — 10:30 a.m. to noon or 1:30-3 p.m. — are set for Wednesday, Oct. 11, in conference rooms 229 C&D, in the SCCC Student Union building. The presentations are available at no cost to the public, but organizers request that participants sign up in advance.
“Geoff Jenista from the Department of Homeland Security will be here this fall, following presentations from coworkers at the Department of Homeland Security. People in the community have found these seminars truly helpful,” said SCCC Business & Industry Director Norma Jean Dodge. “Everyone said they would like to see more of those types of seminars, especially the workshop on cybersecurity.”
Cybersecurity involves protecting information by preventing, detecting, and responding to attacks. It’s common to hear news stories about credit card numbers being stolen and email viruses spreading, Dodge said, noting that people in the SCCC service area may have even been victims. One of the best defenses is understanding the risks, knowing what some of the basic terms mean, and what you can do to protect yourself against them.
“That’s what we hope this workshop will provide,” she said. “We’re moving into a time in society when everything is electronic. How do you protect yourself against the risks that come with that?”
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) presentation encourages businesses and personnel to make cyber security and identity protection part of their regular routine in order to reduce their risk of cyberattacks and identity theft.
In his role as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Kansas Protective Security Advisor (PSA), Jenista works in that world daily.
Jenista contributes to the development of the national risk picture by assisting with the coordination, outreach and regional support to protect Cyber components and minimize risk to critical assets. Jenista has over 37 years of experience in Enterprise IT Operations, Project Management and expertise with Information Security technologies in a combi-nation of both Federal and military service. As the Region VII CSA, Jenista conducts Cyber Resilience Reviews, Cyber Infrastructure Surveys and External Dependency Reviews for Critical Infrastructures and Key Resources. He acts as a Cyber Security Advisor to the private sector, federal, state, tribal and local agencies. Jenista holds a BS degree in Computer Information Systems, a MA in IT Management and he has a MBA. He is certified as a Computer Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and teaches cyber security courses, at the Graduate level, for multiple universities.
“We’re really excited about this presentation, and hope to see people take advantage of the opportunity,” said Dodge. “It’s becoming more and more important to understand cybersecurity on a personal and business level, so this is something the Chamber and B&I definitely wanted to bring to the public.”
The free workshop does require registration in advance. For more information, contact SCCC’s Business & Industry department, by calling 620-417-1170, or emailing bandi@sccc.edu.
Categories: Business & Industry
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