Augusta University is Georgia's health sciences university and a national center for cyber security education. Home to the state’s only public academic medical center, Augusta’s world-class clinicians are bringing the medicine of tomorrow to patient care today. The university is comprised of nine colleges, including one of the nation's oldest medical schools, the Medical College of Georgia; the Hull College of Business; and the state's only dental school, the Dental College of Georgia.

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Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)

Eta Kappa Nu, National Electrical and Computer Engineering Honor Society

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International Information System Security Certification Consortium (ISC)²

American Radio Relay League, ARRL (Amateur Extra, KO4ASU)

Military Cyber Professionals Association

Signal Corps Regimental Association

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Dr. Michael Nowatkowski is a professor with Augusta University's School of Computer and Cyber Sciences. He also serves as the director of AU’s Cyber Institute and head of Cyber Programs of Study.

Hardware and Embedded Systems

Cellular and Mobile Technology

Defensive Cyber Operations

Cyber Operations Education

TCP/IP Protocol Analysis

Control System Security

Medical Device Security

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protecting-the-home-front-cities-battle-to-keep-computer-systems-safe-from-cyberattack

Professor; Director, AU Cyber Institute

Hackers continue to make more frequent and sophisticated attempts to infiltrate municipalities and government computer systems. In the past few months, Augusta, Georgia, and Dallas, Texas, are among the cities that have experienced system breaches. Some of the unauthorized access is caused by employees simply clicking on a wrong link, while others are premeditated attempts to steal data through the breach.

 They aren’t easy to defend, but everyone, including individuals, governments and businesses, must be vigilant when it comes to protocols and security.

Michael Nowatkowski is the head of the cyber program of study in the School of Computer and Cyber Sciences at Augusta University and knows there are a lot of bad actors out there.

“There’s potential, if they are able to get onto your system, that it would be something like ransomware, where they would prevent you from using your data,” said Nowatkowski.  He added it might not be just for monetary gain. They could simply eavesdrop and collect data without anyone’s knowledge.

“You want to find them as quickly as possible so they can’t perform these malicious activities or sit in a dormant state just collecting data for a long period of time,” he added.   When it comes to attacks on cities, Nowatkowski said the bad actors may just want to discredit the city or agency by defacing their web pages. In other cases, they may force a ransomware attack to get money out of the city to re-access the data.

He added it’s a challenge to prepare and defend for the attacks, as you never know what the attack vector is going to be.

“For cities to defend, they always have to be vigilant. They should try to encourage their users to use the systems responsibly. User education is a very big step and is a proactive step in defending your networks,” said Nowatkowski.  He also said if an attack did happen, it’s important to look for ways to prevent future attacks, try to figure out the root cause of how the attack happened and put measures into place to prevent them from happening in the future. This may include having a third party conduct an assessment of the network to look for vulnerabilities.

If you’re a journalist look to know more or have been assigned to cover any aspect of cybersecurity in the nation, then let our experts help with your coverage.

Dr. Michael Nowatkowski is an associate professor with the School of Computer and Cyber Sciences at Augusta University. He also serves as the head of the cyber program of study. Nowatkowski is available to speak with media regarding the emerging threat of cybersecurity in America. Simply click on his icon now to arrange an interview today.




Protecting the home front: Cities battle to keep computer systems safe from cyberattack

cyberattacks-are-rising-to-the-top-of-american-concerns

With the rising occurrence of cyber-attacks across America, institutions, banks, government agencies and top-tier companies are now either falling victim or feeling vulnerable to attack from online enemies abroad.

It’s a topic that is now front and center that has most leaders regardless of poltical party in agreement - and media across the country are starting to cover with more depth and seriousness.

Most Americans across party lines have serious concerns about cyberattacks on U.S. computer systems and view China and Russia as major threats, according to a new poll. The poll by The Pearson Institute and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that about 9 in 10 Americans are at least somewhat concerned about hacking that involves their personal information, financial institutions, government agencies or certain utilities. About two-thirds say they are very or extremely concerned. Roughly three-quarters say the Chinese and Russian governments are major threats to the cybersecurity of the U.S. government, and at least half also see the Iranian government and non-government bodies as threatening. October 11 – Associated Press   "I am really interested in the security of our critical infrastructure systems," said Dr. Michael Nowatkowski. " If an attacker were able to shut those systems down, great harm would result.  This is a national security issue."

If you’re a journalist look to know more or have been assigned to cover any aspect of cyber-security in the country, then let our experts help with your coverage.

Dr. Michael Nowatkowski is an Associate Professor with the School of Computer and Cyber Sciences at Augusta University. He also serves as the Head of the Cyber Program of Study. Nowatkowski is available to speak with media regarding the emerging threat of cyber-security in America, simply click on his icon now to arrange an interview today.



Cyber-attacks are rising to the top of American concerns

Professor Michael Nowatkowski teaches a course on Hardware and Embedded Systems to upper-level Augusta University students. The course is primarily for operational technology majors and teaches them the physical side of cybersecurity, such as working with programmable devices.

Augusta University Cyber Course

http://www.gru.edu/cybersummit/

Moderator: Joanne Sexton, Cyber Institute Director, Georgia Regents University
Panelists:
- Dr. Len Reinsfelder, Associate Director of Education and Training, NSA
- LTC Michael Nowatkowski, Army Cyber Institute at West Point, Cyber Center of Excellence Forward Support
- Dr. Blair Taylor, Clinical Associate Professor, Computer and Information Sciences, Towson University
- Dr. Mustaque Ahamed, Professor, Computer Science, Georgia Institute of Technology
- Dr. Kyle Cronin, Assistant Professor, Cyber Security, Dakota State University

Emerging Needs for Cybersecurty Curriculum and Skills

Covid-19 has changed education – some are saying forever. As we begin to realize our new “normal”, how are you actively working to avoid online “infection”? What do students (and teachers) need to know and be able to do to stay safe in a digital environment? How can cybersecurity be realized as a ubiquitous part of K12 education?

Speakers: Michael Nowatkowski (Augusta University, Associate Professor), Sean Middleton (Burke County Public Schools, Career, Technical, and Agricultural Education Director), and Ashley Gess (Augusta University, Assistant Professor)

This session was a part of the 2020 Constellations Virtual Computer Science Professional Development Summit. For more information on the summit visit https://constellationspd.cc.gatech.edu/

The summit was presented by the Constellations Center for Equity in Computing, the Georgia Department of Education, CS4GA, and Computer Science Teachers Association.

Connect with us on social media:
Twitter: @GT_CCEC
Instagram: @GT_CCEC
Website: http://constellations.gatech.edu/

Panel: Oh, And By the Way... Be Secure

Talking Cyber: Protecting yourself from Bad Actors
  
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Talking Cyber: Protecting yourself from Bad Actors

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