Future of Cybersecurity Depends on Collaboration Between Industry, Academia and Government
The nation’s top cybersecurity experts convened at the University of Florida to discuss the latest developments in network, software and hardware security.
FICS Research Co-Director Mark Tehranipoor (left) and UF President Kent Fuchs (second from right) with conference attendees
The core message? Collaboration is key.
The push to share new ideas, emerging solutions – and even, potential threats – with the cybersecurity community echoed throughout the two-day conference, hosted by the Florida Institute for Cybersecurity Research (FICS Research) at UF.
UF President Kent Fuchs, who welcomed more than 230 attendees to the event, addressed the implications of an increasingly connected world.
It is an era in which the world we live in depends on network connections in everything we do, Fuchs explained. The potential for cybersecurity threats continues to grow, and global society needs bold ideas and innovations to address these challenges.
This is a team sport.
Greg Akers presents Tehranipoor with Cisco’s command coin.
Keynote speaker and industry representative, Greg Akers noted that the issue of cybersecurity is evolving. Akers, who serves as the Chief Technology Officer of Security & Trust Organization and Senior Vice President of Advanced Security Initiatives at Cisco Systems, says no one can solve these problems by themselves.
“This is a team sport,” he said. “It’s all about innovation and building a community of people to manage risks, so our findings can be mutually beneficial to everyone.”
Akers went on to recognize Mark Tehranipoor, FICS Research co-director and the Intel Charles E. Young Preeminence Endowed Chair Professor in Cybersecurity at UF for being a leader in building that community.
Tehranipoor was presented with Cisco’s command coin, a symbol of being a champion of change in protecting our nation’s security.
No One is Immune to Cyberattacks
FICS Research posters
Tehranipoor, who leads FICS Research, explained that the conference, now in its third year, has brought significant attention to the need for continued engagement and R&D investment to stay ahead of the ever-evolving and increasingly sophisticated threat landscape.
“The fact that no one is immune to cyberattacks makes everyone a stakeholder,” said Tehranipoor. “Just as cyber criminals are experts in sharing information about exploits and vulnerabilities, we continue to foster a community here at FICS Research and UF where information is freely exchanged to cultivate major breakthroughs.”
FICS Research is one of the only institutes nationwide that encompasses a multitude of cybersecurity and assurance aspects including hardware, network, mobile, big data, internet of things (IOT), applied crypto and more. In the last year, three faculty at the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering (Yier Jin, Navid Asadizanjani and Sandip Ray) joined the growing team of experts. The institute also has about 100 enrolled Ph.D. students who continue to establish ongoing collaboration with representatives from industry, government and other academic institutions.
To learn more about FICS Research, visit: fics.institute.ufl.edu