Annual Cyber Symposium Brings Large Crowd, Interesting Discussion

More than 200 people attended a daylong symposium at the University of Maryland on June 10 to explore the latest trends and best practices in cybersecurity research and education.

The 3rd annual Maryland Cybersecurity Symposium joined faculty and students from the Maryland Cybersecurity Center (MC2)—which coordinates the event—with experts from other academic institutions, the private sector, government agencies, and more.

“It allowed us to share the most recent research and education perspectives from the Maryland Cybersecurity Center. We were also able to hear directly from our corporate and government partners about what topics they're interested in pursuing,” says MC2 Director Jonathan Katz.

Vern Paxson, a professor of electrical engineering and computer sciences at the University of California, Berkeley, gave the keynote address, discussing his research on the mindset of cyber criminals.

Paxson related how his team had successfully infiltrated several cybercriminal enterprises by manipulating the systems the criminals used to conduct their attacks. This, in turn, provided an opening for cyber experts to communicate with the hackers and learn about their motives and their activities.

An afternoon discussion on cybersecurity education sparked lively discussion among a panel of experts and audience members.

Led by Michel Cukier, associate director for education for MC2, the panelists included Gary McGraw, chief technical officer for Cigital, Inc.; Casey O’Brien, executive director of CyberWatch; Chris Valentino, director of contract research and development in the cyber solutions division at Northrop Grumman Information Systems; and Katz.

The Maryland Cybersecurity Center is supported by the College of Computer, Mathematical and Natural Sciences and the A. James Clark School of Engineering. It is one of 16 centers and laboratories in the University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies (UMIACS).

To view photos of the symposium, go here.

—Story by Melissa Brachfeld