Morris Plains, New Jersey (PRWEB) November 05, 2015 -- The International Consortium of Minority Cybersecurity Professionals (ICMCP) today announced that leading security company Symantec would sponsor its inaugural National Conference to be held in Washington, D.C. on March 23-24, 2016.
Despite the increasing demand for cybersecurity professionals globally cybersecurity remains a discipline where there is a significant shortage of skilled professionals and where women and other major minority groups are grossly underrepresented.
The conference will focus on the public, private and academic imperatives necessary to overcome the shortage by closing the gap through diversification of the workforce. The event will facilitate a national dialogue toward enhancing opportunities in cybersecurity education and employment for minorities in this burgeoning sector.
“We are thrilled by the response to our inaugural conference, which has been extraordinary, with notable companies like Symantec joining our esteemed Gold and Platinum Sponsors which include Rapid7, CyberPoint Risk Analytics, ISC2 and ThreatStream,” said Carlos L. Edwards, ICMCP Co-founder and Vice President of Operations, and US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Director, Security Risk Analytics. “Cybersecurity has never been more important to our nation’s security and economy. With luminaries from the education, public and private sectors already signed up, this promises to be an exciting, interactive and informative conference that will help fill the workforce shortage by advancing the goal of creating more opportunities for minorities.”
During the conference, attendees will:
• Engage thought leaders from industry, government and academia
• Network with security luminaries
• Gain insight from women and minority cybersecurity practitioners
• Interact with cutting-edge security vendors
• Attend professional development workshops
• Explore career paths in cybersecurity
• Learn about scholarships and internship opportunities
According to the National Science Foundation (NSF), women are underrepresented in Information Technology (IT) and cybersecurity, comprising only 29% of the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) workforce despite making up 48% of the US professional workforce. Specifically, according to various studies including research from the International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium (ISC2) women comprise only 10% of the cybersecurity workforce. Similarly, minorities are grossly underrepresented with African Americans and Hispanics combined representing less than 11% of the cybersecurity workforce.
SAVE THE DATE
WHEN: March 23–24, 2016
WHO: Cybersecurity Executives, Cybersecurity Professionals, Exhibitors, Students, and Aspiring Practitioners
WHERE: Washington, DC (venue to be announced)
For more information on sponsorship please contact: sponsors(at)icmcp(dot)org
To receive updates on the conference please contact us: https://icmcp.org/save-the-date/
About ICMCP
The ICMCP is a volunteer-led 501©3 non-profit organization. Launched in 2014, the ICMCP is working to bridge the gap in the cybersecurity sector by providing scholarship opportunities, technical training programs, innovative outreach, mentoring and networking programs targeting women and minority cybersecurity professionals worldwide and by promoting academic and technical excellence in the industry. The ICMCP held its first National Town Hall meeting during National Cybersecurity Awareness Month in October 2015 at the U.S. House of Representatives Rayburn House Office Building, Capitol Hill. To watch to the keynote from Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Lee visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeB88u0bNuc
Veda Woods, International Consortium of Minority Cybersecurity Professionals, http://www.icmcp.org, +1 (800) 924-1458, [email protected]
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