Cyber Oregon
“With the formal launch of the Cyber Oregon initiative, we're taking an important step forward toward improving cybersecurity across Oregon while highlighting great work already taking place across Oregon companies, educational institutions and other organizations,” Alex Pettit, CIO, State of Oregon
PORTLAND, Ore. (PRWEB) November 20, 2017
Oregon Governor Kate Brown today proclaimed Nov. 20 as the “Oregon Day of Cyber” and officially launched the Cyber Oregon initiative at an event held at the Oregon Tech Portland-Metro campus in Wilsonville. Cyber Oregon is a statewide initiative powered by a public-private consortium including the Oregon Cybersecurity Advisory Council, Technology Association of Oregon, Oregon’s cyber-related industries, Oregon’s Executive Branch agencies, local governments, higher education institutions and other organizations to help build tangible solutions to protect the digital lives of all Oregonians.
Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici introduced Governor Brown who spoke about the importance of cybersecurity to the State of Oregon and explained that as everyone becomes more dependent on technology at work and at home, the rapidly growing and increasingly sophisticated cyber threat landscape is a major cause for concern. The Governor also stated that cybersecurity is a shared responsibility among both the public and private sector and state agencies, local governments, educational institutions and Oregon’s private sector can’t afford to go it alone.
Cyber Oregon Executive Sponsors Alex Pettit, PhD, CIO of the State of Oregon, and Skip Newberry, president and CEO of the Technology Association of Oregon, underscored the importance of the Cyber Oregon initiative to ensure the digital security of the people and industries of Oregon.
“With the formal launch of the Cyber Oregon initiative, we're taking an important step forward toward improving cybersecurity across Oregon while highlighting on great work already taking place across Oregon companies, educational institutions and other organizations,” said Dr. Pettit.
According to Newberry, “The Cyber Oregon initiative is vitally important to Oregon. Cybercrime is far more pervasive than most people realize. The recent massive data breach at Equifax where 143 million records were stolen is only the tip of the iceberg. In Oregon, 165 companies have reported data breaches since the Oregon Consumer Identity Theft Protect Act went into effect on Jan 1, 2016. Considering that industry experts estimate the average cost to business of a data breach at $17 million per incident, the financial impact of cyber crime to Oregon organizations adds up quickly.”
Among the highlights of the event was the launch of the Cyber Oregon website. The new Cyber Oregon website, located at http://www.cyberoregon.com, is intended as a one-stop resource for all things cyber in Oregon, including cybersecurity news, threat alerts, event announcements, educational information, resources, a job board for cybersecurity job seekers and other helpful information. The site includes special offers for Cyber Oregon members, including free Splunk® training through the Splunk Pledge, and cybersecurity consultations for business owners offered through the Small Business Development Council (SBDC) of Oregon. The website will also provide ongoing updates on the work of the Oregon Cybersecurity Advisory Council and its work to establish a public-private Cybersecurity Center of Excellence in Oregon.
Following the presentations, a panel discussion of top cybersecurity experts examined the state of cybersecurity in Oregon and plans for the future. In addition, the event included a job fair for individuals seeking careers in cybersecurity and a vendor fair of cybersecurity technology companies. Attendees included state and local government representatives, educators, students, technology companies and small businesses.
Attending the event were several members of the Oregon Cybersecurity Advisory Council which includes Executive Sponsors Alex Pettit, CIO, State of Oregon; Skip Newberry, president and CEO, Technology Association of Oregon; and Stefan Richards, Chief Information Security Officer, State of Oregon; Chair Andrew Plato, CEO, Anitian; Vice Chair Kerri Fry, president, Redhawk Network Security; Treasurer Skip Newberry, president and CEO, Technology Association of Oregon; Secretary Megan McKenzie, CEO, McKenzie Worldwide; Michael Gutsche, security strategist, Micro Focus International; Charlie Kawasaki, CTO, PacStar; Ken Kestner, Lake County Commissioner; Travis Miller, policy and communications strategist, Office of the State CIO; Tom Quillin, CTO Security Economics, McAfee; Kris Rosenberg, assistant professor, Oregon Tech; Andy Schroder, IT Security, Intel; and Dennis Tomlin, information security officer, Multnomah County.
Sponsors of the Cyber Oregon Awareness Initiative include Platinum Sponsors Redhawk Network Security and Splunk Inc.; Gold Sponsors Amazon Web Services, Comcast NBCUniversal, First Data, Fortinet, and Zscaler; Silver Sponsors Anitian, CA Technologies, Galois, Hueya, PacStar, PKI Solutions and Sword & Shield.
About Cyber Oregon
Cyber Oregon is a statewide initiative powered by a public-private consortium of technology companies, educational institutions, state/local government agencies, law enforcement and other organizations to build tangible solutions to protect the digital lives of all Oregonians. The Oregon Cybersecurity Advisory Council was established pursuant to Senate Bill 90, signed by Governor Kate Brown on September 19, 2017, to develop a shared vision for the establishment of a cross-sector Cybersecurity Center of Excellence. The Cyber Oregon awareness initiative was formed in partnership with the Technology Association of Oregon (TAO) to develop and increase awareness of cybersecurity programs, education and resources throughout the state. To learn more about Cyber Oregon, please visit cyberoregon.com.
About Technology Association of Oregon
The Technology Association of Oregon is a local nonprofit working to build opportunities, better our economy and unify a voice for innovation in Oregon and beyond. A recognized leader in shaping and growing technology and business communities, TAO empowers businesses and entrepreneurs through networks, events, advocacy, resources and more. With over 400 member-companies, TAO’s network brings together some of the largest companies in the world, small startups, and tech-enabled companies that are using technology to drive growth and innovation.