JEFFERSON CITY –Today the Missouri Office of Administration, in cooperation with its Information Technology Services Division (ITSD) and Office of Cyber Security, announced that the Governor’s Cybersecurity Summit will be held on August 30, 2016 in Jefferson City. The summit is being funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for a statewide cybersecurity preparedness initiative to bolster the state’s ongoing efforts to strengthen cybersecurity by raising awareness and sharing best practices with local governments, businesses, educational institutions and citizens.
“State government is uniquely positioned to serve as a cybersecurity resource for organizations in both the public and private sectors,” Office of Administration Commissioner Doug Nelson said. “This event will bring together our team of cybersecurity professionals with participants from across Missouri to further strengthen cybersecurity preparedness statewide.”
The Cybersecurity Summit will allow the Office of Administration to engage with stakeholders, including representatives of state and local governments; law enforcement; business; higher education; and K-12 institutions. The key goals of the cybersecurity preparedness initiative include:
- Information Sharing and Awareness, including sharing past experiences and information about current and emerging threats and industry best practices;
- Training and Exercises, with an emphasis on sharing expertise and experience on tools proven most effective in detecting and defending against the growing number of cyber events;
- Workforce Development, including strategies for educating the current and future cybersecurity workforce;
- Hardening Critical Infrastructure, such as the electrical grid with an emphasis on ensuring continuity of services; and
- Incident Response, with an emphasis on swift and effective coordinated response to cyber threats.
In 2015, the Office of Administration’s Information Technology Services Division was honored with the “Overall Excellence in Cyber Security Award” at the FireEye Cyber Defense Summit in Washington, D.C. Missouri ITSD was chosen for being a model of cybersecurity awareness, infrastructure and practices.
In 2014, Missouri was one of only three states in the nation to receive an A grade from the Center for Digital Government in its annual Digital State Survey, which is conducted every two years to assess state governments’ ability to improve IT systems for better operational outcomes and services to citizens.
Topics at the Cybersecurity Summit will include: Organizational Awareness – What Leaders Can Do; Combating Small Business Cyber Threats; Solving the Personnel Gap; The Role of Education in Cybersecurity; and How to Be Prepared for Cyber-Attacks, among others. Online registration for the summit is available here.