On January 19, 2022, Q-Net, along with Network Perception, acted as co-title sponsors for (CS)²AI (see-say for short), providing four critical speakers for an online symposium titled “Control System Cyber Security for Energy—Part 2 Electric Sector.” (CS)²AI is a nonprofit dedicated to educating and supporting professionals that have the job of securing control systems. It provides a space for this county’s greatest minds to come together to discuss cybersecurity solutions that could help save billions of people from cyber-ruin.

The Symposium

Part 2 on the electric sector provides realistic recommendations and best practices for electric utilities to address current and upcoming compliance and cybersecurity challenges. First, the symposium attendees watched a detailed presentation that laid out the latest government regulations that are being pushed because of recent changes in the cyberthreat landscape. Second, industry practitioners, including the speakers from Q-Net, shared their knowledge on different technology solutions and process improvements that would allow cyber-professionals to build a strong culture of cyber-resiliency. Throughout the event, attendees had plenty of opportunities to interact and ask questions to leverage the shared expertise of the (CS)²AI community. The ability to bring all these minds together and get them thinking and problem-solving is what makes the (CS)²AI and its events so significant.

Q-Net Security’s Key Speakers

As mentioned, Q-Net acted as a co-title sponsor for this event with Network Perception. Together they brought in record-setting attendance to the event. Q-Net was a perfect co-title sponsor for this event, as their cybersecurity solution, the Q-Box, actively improves infrastructure resilience by cloaking endpoint and enterprise devices. These are the speakers who represented Q-Net at the event:

  • Melissa Hathaway – As President of Hathaway Global Strategies, Melissa Hathaway has amassed an impressive career surrounding cybersecurity. She spearheaded the Cyberspace Policy Review for former President Barack Obama and led the Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative (CNCI) for former President George W. Bush. Hathaway has proven to be a valuable asset time and time again.

    Having been awarded the National Intelligence Reform Medal and the National Intelligence Meritorious Unit Citation for her leadership, she has proven to be one of the top influencers in building the United States’ cyber-resiliency.

  • Marc Rogers – VP of Cybersecurity Strategy at OTKA, Rogers is a renowned white-hat hacker. Having hacked into Apple’s Touch ID and the Tesla Model S, he has proven himself a valuable member of the white-hat hacker community. He’s also shared his knowledge on the set of the popular T.V. show “Mr. Robot.” His understanding of the threat landscape helps him as the Head of Security for the world’s largest hacking conference, DEFCON. He is also aware of and actively trying to change the threat posed towards infrastructure, particularly healthcare, by co-founding the CTI-League, an award-winning global public/private organization dedicated to protecting healthcare providers from cyberattacks.
  • Ben Sooter – As Program Manager at the Cybersecurity Electric Power Research Institute, Sooter’s knowledge was paramount to this symposium’s success. Part of this year’s symposium discussed the importance of protecting OT technology, something Sooter knows all too much about (having led government research proposal efforts for OT cybersecurity). His work has allowed him to influence the changes in the industry roadmap and vision to address the rapidly changing electric power industry. Sooter is also trained to be an incident responder and investigator. A recipient of the rare SANS Lethal Forensicator Coin, individuals like Sooter, may be the only line defense an organization has during a compromise or complex digital investigation.
  • Branko D. Terzic – Now Managing Director fi the Berkeley Research Group, Terzic gained experience as the former Commissioner of both the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and State of Wisconsin Public Service Commission. He also served as CEO of Yankee Energy Systems, an internationally recognized regulator, management consultant, and expert witness in the energy, public utility, and infrastructure industries. However, his knowledge of infrastructure regulation and protection doesn’t stop there. Terzic’s impressive career has also seen him as a Regulatory Policy Leader at Deloitte Services. If you need an expert in utility regulation and distributed electricity resources, then you’ve found your man.

Why We Need (CS)²AI

We need (CS)²AI and the experts that lend their knowledge for such an event because there’s simply no other option than to prepare ourselves for cyberthreats. Tensions around the world are worse than ever. So, it’s not pessimistic to assume that a cyberthreat is just around the corner. If anything, (CS)²AI and the professionals involved are wise to be pushing new regulations and technologies that could help protect nations from ruin. We’ve become more reliant on the internet than we ever thought possible, and there’s no turning back. All we can do now is protect ourselves.

Protect Yourself With Q-Net Security

The best way to protect yourself from a cyberattack is to make sure it never happens in the first place. That’s what Q-Net’s Q-Box ensures. By protecting endpoints with military-grade encryption, you can rest assured that your information is safe from prying eyes. The Q-Box is great for legacy systems, or any system for that matter. It’s compatible with almost anything, and the best part is once we install it, it requires no updates or patches ever! Contact Q-Net today to schedule a free demo. You’ll be glad you did.