Cisco estimates that
50 billion devices & objects
will be connected to the Internet by 2020.
The Internet of the future is not just computers and smart phones,
but every appliance in our home, pills that we take, clothes that
we wear, the roads on which we drive.
According to a recent estimate by the Center for Strategic and
International Studies, a think-tank, the cost to the global
economy of cybercrime and online industrial espionage stands
at $445 billion a year.
Through the Florida Center for Cybersecurity,
Companies are desperate to find graduates with the latest skills and training
USF offers multiple levels of educational
who can stay one step ahead of security threats. Some are finding that
certifications to support workforce needs,
fostering competition is one way to both increase interest in the field among
including a master’s degree in cybersecurity,
college students and discover top up-and-coming talent.
graduate certificates and specialized industry
certification. “We’ve worked directly with
Presented by Raytheon, the National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition
industry to hone in on the important topics that
(NCCDC) pits teams representing colleges across the country against each
need to be taught as part of these programs
other in a challenge to defend mock companies from security threats. Since
so that our graduates can quickly jump into
2005, teams from nationally recognized computer science programs have
the workforce,” said Sridharan. Concentrations
advanced from regional competitions into the annual national finals. Last year,
include cyber intelligence, digital forensics,
the team from the University of Central Florida (UCF) beat out nine other teams
information assurance and computer security
from schools such as the University of California Berkeley, the Rochester Institute
fundamentals, but the curricula will be ever
of Technology and the Air Force Academy to take home the national title.
changing to keep up with the pace of the
technology.
“The 2014 NCCDC champions from UCF showcased the tremendous
“This is an evolving space,” said Sridharan.
talent that resides in the High Tech Corridor,” said Jeff
“With the changes in technology, hackers
Snyder, Raytheon vice president of Cyber Programs.
always seem to be one step ahead. If we’re
students are part of that next wave of cyber technologists
just reactive to fixing the problem that we
and innovators so important to protecting this new information
encounter today, that’s not good enough.”
ecosystem, and our national and economic security.”
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“These