Pat Calhoun is the Executive Director of Workforce Education at Lamar Institute of Technology.  He introduced his friend and colleague, Ira Wilsker, to answer the question “Are We Under Cyber Attack?” 

 

Ira has devoted his life to computers, programming, cyber attacks, law enforcement training and education.  He has been an ongoing contributor to local newspapers and is sought out as an expert in the field of Cyber Security both locally as well as worldwide.  His discussion was targeted on how to educate the public on Cyber Security and how to mitigate the threats and damage from such attacks.

 

Much of what Ira presented was well over our heads and probably only a few in the room truly understood the massive and complex problem of Ransomware, Hacking and Cracking.  Ira let us know that this is no longer just a bunch of 14-year-olds in their rooms having fun with the challenges of hacking into computers.  This is a global threat that is carried out by well-trained, well-funded, and motivated individuals.  These efforts are financed by industries to discover trade practices, by countries to discover national security secrets and by terrorists who wish to do great harm to our country.  Every major newspaper has been compromised as well as private industry large and small.  Ransomware can extort hundreds or millions of dollars by infecting a computer system with malicious malware.  The extortion is to pay the ransom so the systems can be restored.  These actions are difficult to track and even more difficult to prosecute.

 

One of the most serious vulnerabilities is with the national electrical grid.  Through hacking and cracking the entire grid can be brought down.  Every municipality is working to design backup systems and firewalls to protect our country’s power and network system.  So many resources go into these efforts at an enormous cost to all of us.

 

There are many think tanks and organized “war rooms” working on the cyber 911 threat.  Lamar Institute of Technology has created a degree plan with classes beginning this fall.  The employability of those completing programs of this type is 100%.  Salaries can be in excess of $75,000 upon graduation.  This is a growing field and is in need of highly talented individuals.  LIT is excited about the possibilities for students in this exciting field of study.

 

The answer to the question is - YES, we are continuously under Cyber Attack.  And it isn’t enough to re-boot your modem even if the FBI says so!  You must do a hard re-set and be sure to have the newest and latest virus protection software and updates.  The Cyber Spies are crafty and smart.  But we have to be smarter.  We thank Ira for his dedication to keeping us all safe.  He is a gift to our community.