Cybersecurity in Digital Government

Minitrack description

The cybersecurity aspects of government and critical infrastructures have become a hot topic for companies and countries all across the globe. This minitrack examines aspects associated with the security of information technology used by governments and critical infrastructures. Research that explores ways that IT can enhance the ability of government to ensure the safety and security of its citizens. Of special interest are systems such as industrial control systems, SCADA, and process control networks which control infrastructures that include electricity (Smartgrid), pipelines, chemical plants, manufacturing, traffic control and more. International incidents involving nation state attacks have changed the landscape as both government and critical infrastructure elements have suffered damage.

With increasing attacks on systems, companies are looking to the government for answers and security. This involves calls for regulation, control over sensitive technologies, such as strong cryptography, and policy for elements such as active defense and hacking back. Questions as to the role of government in protecting its constituencies from cyber-attacks are also pressing. The issue of cybersecurity information sharing has also risen in importance.

This mintrack explores research into pressing issues surrounding the intersection of cybersecurity and government spheres of influence. Whether technical or policy, from information sharing to new analytical methods of detection of insider threats, this minitrack casts a wide net to bring cross disciplinary thinking to problems with far-reaching implications. This is a wide focus minitrack, if your research involves cybersecurity and has a government component, then this is its home.

Minitrack topics include, but are not limited to:

• Systems for governments to respond to security events
• Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP)
• Cyber physical systems security
• Information assurance and trusted computing
• Information sharing
• Information security economics
• Information warfare
• New threats, including insider and nation states
• Privacy and freedom of information
• Laws and regulation of IT security
• Security of electronic voting
• Security concerns of new technologies such as blockchain and Internet of Things
• Cybersecurity in government disaster recovery and business continuity
• Case reports related to security experiences within government
• Government roles in securing cyberspace
• Regulation of cyberspace as it relates to security

More information on the minitrack chairs:

Wm. Arthur Conklin, PhD, is an Associate Professor and Director of the Center for Information Security Research and Education at the University of Houston. He holds two terminal degrees, a Ph.D. in Business Administration (specializing in Information Security), from The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) and the degree Electrical Engineer (specializing in Space Systems Engineering) from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, CA. He holds a variety of security certifications including Security+, CISSP, CSSLP, GICSP, GRID, GCFA, GCIA, CASP, and CRISC. He has co-authored six security books and numerous academic articles associated with information security. He is active as a steering committee member of the DHS sponsored Industrial Control Systems Joint Working Group (ICSJWG). An ISSA Fellow, he is also a senior member of ASQ, IEEE and ACM. His research interests include the use of systems theory to explore information security, specifically in Cyber Physical Systems and critical infrastructures.

Gregory B. White, Ph.D., is the Director of the Center for Infrastructure Assurance and Security at The University of Texas at San Antonio. He has been involved in computer security for over 20 years and has published extensively on the subject. His research interests currently include community cyber security, security visualization, mini-botnet detection and eradication, and critical infrastructure protection. He is the creator of the Community Cyber Security Maturity Model (CCSMM) and is also involved in security competitions at both the collegiate and high school levels.

Keith B. Harrison earned a PhD in computer science from the University of Texas at San Antonio. Dr. Harrison's doctoral dissertation was on the scalable detection of community cyber incidents utilizing distributed and anonymous security information sharing. His research interests include community cybersecurity, information sharing, cryptography, peer-to-peer networks, honeynets, virtualization, and visualization. He also assists with the operation of the Standards Information Sharing and Analysis Organization (ISAO) Standards Organization. In addition to his research activities, Dr. Harrison is also the lead software architect of the Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (CCDC) Scoring Engine, and the CyberPatriot Competition System (CCS) Scoring Engine. He also enjoys assisting in the operation of the National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (NCCDC), Panoply King of the Hill Competition, and the CyberPatriot National High School Cyber Defense Competition.