SNS: World Interrupted: The Cyber Infrastructure Threat

In This Issue
Week of 2/04/2019
Vol. 24 Issue 4

SNS: World Interrupted: The Cyber Infrastructure Threat

A Conversation with Malek Ben Salem and Marcus Sachs

Hosted by Kim Dozier

• About Malek Ben Salem
• About Marcus Sachs
• About Kimberly Dozier

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Publisher’s Note: There are many cyber experts today who believe that so-called “logic bombs” have already been placed throughout the electric grid of the US. All that remains to be done is set them off when the attacking nation wishes.

No one needs to make the argument that protection of infrastructure is critical, and very difficult.

In this week’s discussion, two world experts address these issues around national vulnerabilities, in ways that are objective, useful, and, of course, chilling. – mra
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World Interrupted: The Cyber Infrastructure Threat

A Conversation with Malek Ben Salem, Senior Manager, Security R&D, Accenture;
and Marcus Sachs, Chief Security Officer, Pattern Computer Inc., and (fmr.) Cyber Program Director, National Cyber Security Division, Dept. of Homeland Security

Hosted by Kimberly Dozier, CNN Global Affairs Analyst and Contributor, The Daily Beast

FiRe 2018 Conference

Thursday, October 11, 2018 – Stein Eriksen Deer Valley – Park City, Utah

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Kimberly Dozier: Our panel now is on cyber infrastructure.

In March, Atlanta underwent one of the largest cyberattacks on a US city, ever. One-third of its software programs were thrown offline or partially disabled. Thirty percent of those were considered “mission-critical,” affecting core city services. The City Attorney’s office lost 71 out of 77 computers and a decade of legal documents, and the police lost all dash-cam footage. This year, the city has requested $10 million in additional IT funding and recovery costs alone.

With this as a starting-off point, we’re going to be asking: How does a city protect its cyber infrastructure against this in the future?

With us to discuss, we have Malek Ben Salem; she’s senior research principal for Cyber Security R&D at Accenture. And Marcus Sachs, who is the CSO at Pattern Computer Inc. and was a plank holder who helped build the DHS cyber operation.

I have warned them, we’ve got a lightning-round question from the “red teaming” side of the house: If you were an adversary wanting to attack the United States – say, perhaps, the US made some move you in the South China Sea [laughter] – what city would you strike, and what would you attack?

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