A Salute to All Competing College Teams!

The qualification round competition was fierce, with more than half of the teams earning scores near the top of the pack. The other teams who competed include Augusta University Cyber Jags; California State Polytechnic University, Pomona Hercules; California State University, Chico usr0; John A. Logan College Logan Defenders; Long Beach City College Cyber Valkyries; Middle Georgia State University Cyber Knights; National University NUCL3@R; Pikes Peak Community College P2C4; Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico Cyber Castors; Riverside City College CYBER; Rochester Institute of Technology RITSEC; San Diego State University Cyber Defense Team; Stanford University Applied Cyber; University of Advancing Technology MAC; and the University of Delaware Blue Hens.

RESTON, Va., Nov. 1, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, KATZCY Consulting released, Cybersecurity Games: Building Tomorrow's Workforce.  This white paper explores multiple public-private views on the potential role of cyber competitions in raising awareness of cybersecurity careers, enhancing education and training, attracting capable resources to the field and addressing a widespread skills gap. The catalyst for this discussion is the reality that thousands of cybersecurity jobs in the US remain unfilled while cyber attacks on American corporations and institutions are increasing in frequency and sophistication, demonstrated as recently as October 21, 2016 with the cyber attack against the Internet traffic provider, Dyn. To download the paper, visit http://lp.katzcy.com/cybersecuritygames

The need for this white paper discussion was identified by the Competitions subgroup of the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) Working Group. The NICE Working Group provides a mechanism in which public and private sector participants can develop concepts, design strategies, and pursue actions that advance cybersecurity education, training and workforce development.

The paper was based on interviews with 28 major players in and around the cybersecurity field:  thought leaders representing government agencies, defense contractors, other private industry entities and academia, including the National Security Agency, the US Department of Homeland Security, the Air Force Association, Northrop Grumann, Facebook, U.S. Cyber Challenge, CyberCompEx, Cyber Federation and the University of Maryland.

Story by Marilyn Campbell

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Link to story: http://m.arlingtonconnection.com/news/2016/oct/25/making-stem-fun-children/?templates=mobile

On March 6th, 16 volunteers from Women's Society of Cyberjutsu held a STEM workshop for middle-school aged girls for the annual "Girl Power" event. The volunteers were technical assistants and a few actually taught some of the lesson. 

Two 45-minute workshops were held reaching 48 students. WSC volunteer, Marcelle Lee, lead the way teaching 'Track the Hacker'. 

Track the Hacker excerpt:

Being a good cyber ninja means you have to know how you may be attacked in the cyber world so you can stop the attack from happening. Knowing how to investigate once you've been hacked is equally important. This hands-on workshop will show you how to use industry tools that hackers and cybersecurity professionals use to break into and test computer systems.

The girls used a variety of tools to track a hacker from Wireshark to Nmap to QuickStego, all of which can be downloaded free of charge.

Thank you to all our wonderful volunteers for making this event a success!

Interested in volunteering with WSC or CGA? Contact us at volunteer@womenscyberjutsu.org.
 

Marcelle Lee, Director of WSC Women’s Education and Training, traveled to Canberra, Australia in April to speak at the inaugural Australian Cyber Security Centre conference.  Her plenary session topic was Diversity in Tech: Increasing the Cyber Security Workforce Pipeline.  Her talk provoked a lot of conversation about the diversity issues Australia’s tech community is facing.  There was also an impromptu Women in Cyber Security lunchtime session hosted by Sandra Ragg, Assistant Secretary, Cyber Policy, from the Prime Minister’s office, and assisted by Elly van den Heuvel, Secretary to Cyber Security Council of the Netherlands, and Marcelle.  

The two-day conference featured an impressive array of Australian and international speakers, with representation from government, academia, and the private sector.   The conference also garnered support from leading tech companies from around the world.  

The Australian Cyber Security Centre is a new partnership between several agencies, including the Department of Defence, the Attorney-General’s Department, Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, Australian Federal Police and Australian Crime Commission all under one roof.  It is considered a hub for greater collaboration and information sharing with the private sector, state and territory governments, academia and international partners to combat the full range of cyber threats.

While in Australia, Marcelle also had the opportunity to promote the Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu, and also caught up with one of our Australian members, Brianna Malcolmson.  

A severe diversity gap comes to light at computer security firms

Angela Swartz Tech reporter- Silicon Valley Business Journal

The dearth of women and minorities in computer security came into sharper focus at the RSA security conference in San Francisco with a workforce study that showed the industry lagging even the paltry numbers at Silicon Valley’s larger technology companies.

The 2015 ISC² workforce study shows 10 percent of the information security workforce is women, compared to about 30 percent at tech companies like Google Inc., Twitter Inc. and Apple Inc. The combined percentages of African Americans and Hispanics in the field of cybersecurity totals less than 10 percent as well, according to data from an RSA presentation.

“We need to invite women in,” Michelle Cobb, VP Marketing of Skybox Security, said during a panel Monday. “This change is not going to happen by itself. Ten percent is appalling; that’s a number we should all be shocked at.”

The demand for security professionals is going to outstrip the supply, said Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts, CEO of the Women's Society of Cyberjutsu, during another panel at RSA. Bringing in these underrepresented communities will help solve the problem.

“If we don’t make sure there's more growth in this space, we’re going to fall behind that much further,” said Larry Whiteside, executive vice president of the International Consortium of Minority Cyber Professionals. “A CEO of a large tech company said something alarming to me: Every year there are 300,000 computer science graduates; 3 percent go into security. Out of that 3 percent, only 3 percent are minorities.”

The discussion about diversity at technology companies often circles back to the pipeline question: How many women or people of color are choosing science, technology, engineering and math, the STEM curricula, to study?

“Girls are shying away from STEM,” Foreman-Jiggetts said. “It’s not cool to be in tech; we’d like to see girls go into cyber work. This is a historical thing. We need to come together. They have to see there’s women like us doing this type of work.”

Teaching children at a young age about the importance of work in science and engineering is important, many of the panelists at RSA said. Only 16 percent of senior high school students in the U.S. are proficient and interested in STEM, RSA data show.

School curricula need to match up better with the dynamic world of cybersecurity as well, said Renee Forney, executive director of the Cyberskills Management Support Initiative for the Department of Homeland Security. And without having an understanding of the practical applications of the skills they are taught, it’s boring for students, she said.

She noted that women opt out before they even start in STEM careers.

You can’t just throw money at this problem and think it’s going to be solved, Forney said. The industry and government need to work together to make sure professors are teaching the right material, she said.

Changing corporate culture will happen by having more minorities, including women, in leadership, said Joyce Brocaglia, CEO of the Executive Women's Forum, a group aimed at attracting, retaining and advancing women in the information security, IT risk management and privacy industries.

“How do we get these folks from opting out?” she said. “Women struggle with the same things. They struggle with being emotional at work. They struggle with having a powerful voice and having a seat at the table and integrating their business and personal lives.”

Confidence and not worrying so much about being liked will definitely help women succeed in Internet security, said Angela Knox, engineering director at Cloudmark.

“There’s like a puzzle,” she said. “Malicious actors are working in an economy, and working together collaboratively. Being able to put the puzzle together is one of the key skills.”

That’s why skills like collaboration and being able to see the bigger picture, attributes that women often have, will help fight the top security issues today, she said.

Link to Article: http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2015/04/21/a-severe-diversity-gap-comes-to-light-at-computer.html?page=all

Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts, founder and CEO of WSC, along with her co-panelists. shared some insights into the different paths available to enter the cybersecurity field,

This panel was hosted as part of the Credentials to Careers initiative, a partnership between Northern Virginia Community College, nonprofit workforce development organizations, and local IT employers to provide high performing education and training programs leading to credentials and a career in IT. 

Thank you to our volunteers!

Victoria Ho

Veronica Mitchell

Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts

Mouna Farhat

Andrea Harvey

Sharda Khati

Veronica Mitchell

Juliet Okafor

Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts

On the other side of town, the DC Public Library held its 2015 Teen Tech Week Maker Fair. WSC showcased fun activities using Makey Makey’s - making music with drums and a piano keyboard using broccoli, flowers a pie pan & celery and carrots, respectively. Attendees also got to play video games using playdoh!

Thank you to our volunteers:

Rebecca Weaver

Veronica Mitchell

Sharda Khati

Jeanette Snook

Shola Lawal

Marcelle Lee

Mouna Farhat

Cathy Hogendobler

Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts

By Lauren Budik on December 1, 2014 Local Leaders, News, STEM

Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts, Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu

WashingtonExec’s STEM Executive series spotlights local government and private sector executives and their insights about the shortage in STEM workers/local pipeline gap.

The greater Washington area employs the largest percentage of STEM workers (18.8 percent in Maryland and 16.5 in Virginia, according to a U.S. Census report), suggesting the area depends heavily on STEM competence for its continued sustainability. And while industry and government execs are eager to hire STEM graduates, the number of U.S. high school seniors who are both proficient and interested in STEM lies at a meager 16 percent.

WashingtonExec interviewed Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts, Founder and CEO of the Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu (WSC).

WashingtonExec: When did you become interested in STEM issues?

Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts: I became interested in STEM, specifically technology when I was around 12-years-old. My dad brought home a computer which was a very exciting moment as I’ve always loved gadgets, especially taking them apart and trying to put them back together. I learned to use this computer and install DOS programs and games and know this was the starting point for what is now my career as an Information Security Professional.

Not until recently, in the last decade or so did I observe kids, especially girls were turning away from STEM areas. I’ve had so much fun discovering and working in technology, I was at a loss for why more didn’t find it fascinating.

Along with the need to help fill the growing demand for cybersecurity professionals, there’s a huge gender gap in STEM. That’s why I created the Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu (WSC) and our girls in STEM program – Cyberjutsu Girls Academy.

I felt a strong need to share what I knew, how everyone needs to be a digital native, and how important a diverse work force is.

'There seems to be less play involved with learning. You have to have the time available to be able to play, to practice, to build, to fail. When all your learning is devoted to testing, memorizing and listening to instruction, there is little left to discover all that there is in STEM.'

WashingtonExec: What do you see as the underlying root of this problem?

Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts: There’s just not one underlying root to this problem. Firstly, there is not enough exposure in these areas. We have a pipeline issue. That’s why exposure and awareness needs to start at an early age. I’m seeing more and more STEM camps and organizations providing STEM awareness and activities and that’s a great start. To get kids excited, there has to be a fun and cool aspect to it. There needs to be more involvement from schools, parents and organizations. There seems to be less play involved with learning. You have to have the time available to be able to play, to practice, to build, to fail. When all your learning is devoted to testing, memorizing and listening to instruction, there is little left to discover all that there is in STEM.

Another problem is mass media has painted a picture of what a stereotypical techie looks like and to an impressionable kid, especially a girl, that may not be attractive. Seeing more women in these STEM fields as role models allows girls to see that there are women doing this type of work.

WashingtonExec: How and where should policymakers be focusing their resources and efforts to augment the pipeline and address the underlying problem?

Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts: I think the biggest efforts should be spent starting at K-12 schools. Mandate to have computer science as part of the curriculum. With that being said, having experienced and qualified teachers is just as important. It would be a disservice if computer science was taught in a boring nature. Also providing funding to allow for more partnerships with organizations that teach STEM or computer science for after school or weekend classes would be beneficial. The bottom line is, we have to get kids interested young so they pursue these fields as a career.

Secondly, specifically to the cybersecurity field, there’s a growing demand for qualified professionals. The pipeline issue can’t be more evident here with thousands of jobs going unfilled. But what’s interesting is women make up 50 percent of the workforce, but only represent 25 percent of the information technology field with 11 percent in cybersecurity. We’re seeing that women are facing a multitude of challenges entering the field and are not getting hired to fill these jobs. While we want diversity, because of its endless benefits, it’s not happening.

Policymakers have an opportunity to increase the pipeline greatly by looking into these challenges. It won’t do us any good if we build our pipeline but don’t hire women.

WashingtonExec: What challenges do you see currently impeding the path to implementing that solution and making STEM reform a priority in the U.S.?

Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts: I think there’s a lack of understanding overall of the path those in STEM take and how early learning ties into filling the pipeline. There are a lot of moving parts and information is disparate, so you have folks working on one issue, separately, with no tie in to a related issue that someone else is working. There’s no master action plan. Plus the issue of the STEM pipeline takes years to study and with technology and associated requirements changing every year, it definitely poses a monstrous challenge.

WashingtonExec: Why do you care?

Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts: I care because being in the position I’m in now, I feel it’s something we have to do. I think back and wonder if there was a program like this that I could’ve attended when I was a kid, how much further and faster I would’ve gotten here. It is my investment in the future of our country and that of our global neighbors. We have the means to mentor and support those that will make tomorrow all that it can be. The Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu offers workshops to a variety of middle and high school girls through our Cyberjutsu Girls Academy. What is shared and produced in a six hour day is profound. Our program plants the seed and the girls run with it.

The women who are members of the Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu leave with a multitude of skills along with feeling empowered and confident, but more importantly know that our organization is always taking action to level the playing field and increase diversity in field.

Promoting Diversity in the Talent Pool

Women represent a staggeringly low percentage of cybersecurity professionals — and the Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu hopes to remedy this by giving women and girls resources to advance in the field.

http://www.evanta.com/ciso/summits/washington-dc/agenda

WSC Founder/CEO, Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts and Women's Education Director, Marcelle Lee present at Bsides Delaware, sharing on the topic of increasing diversity in tech.

Look around the room and what do you see? A lot of white guys, right? So we love white guys but we'd like to see more diversity. Women and minorities are vastly under-represented in the tech arena. The Women's Society of Cyberjutsu is actively working to change the playing field and we need your help! We would like to share some statistics and also our personal experiences in order to start a dialog about how we can all make a difference.

http://www.securitybsides.com/w/page/81424469/BSidesDelaware2014

  Promoting Diversity in the Cyber Workforce

WSC Founder/CEO Sits on Panel at NICE 2014 Conference and Expo 

Supporting women STEM students and researchers is not only an essential part of America's strategy to out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build the rest of the world; it is also important to women themselves. Women in STEM jobs earn 33 percent more than those in non-STEM occupations and experience a smaller wage gap relative to men. And STEM careers offer women the opportunity to engage in some of the most exciting realms of discovery and technological innovation. Increasing opportunities for women in these fields is an important step towards realizing greater economic success and equality for women across the board. Panel members will discuss how they are attracting, supporting, recruiting, retaining, and promoting women in STEM education programs and careers, mostly focusing on Cybersecurity.

• Moderator

• Alice Shaffer, Program Director, DOD Information Assurance Scholarship Program
•  
•  
• Panelists

• Dr. Jane LeClair, COO, National Cybersecurity Institute at Excelsior College
•  
• Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts, Founder & CEO, Women's Society of Cyberjutsu
•  
• Dr. Ambareen Siraj, Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science, Tennessee Tech University
•  
• Kim Curtis, Signature Academy Coordinator, Gaithersburg High School
•  
• LeVorn Smalley, Anne Arundel Workforce Development

WSC Interviews with Security Weekly

WSC Founder/CEO, Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts and Women's Education Director, Marcelle Lee participate as guests on Security Weekly.

Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts, Founder & CEO

Lisa Foreman founded the Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu as she recognized the lack of women, and the resources for women entering or trying to advance in the field of Cybersecurity. Lisa comes from a technical background which started in the military where she was a system administrator. She has 17 years of IT experience, 14 of which are in cybersecurity. Her experience ranges from policy development, risk assessments, penetration testing and vulnerability assessments.

She has dealt with a wide range of clients from military and government to commercial. She holds a variety of certifications, as well as a Bachelors in Information Technology from the University of Maryland University College and an MBA.

Marcelle Lee, GCIA, CCNA, Security+, Network+, ACE

Marcelle Lee sits on the Board of Directors for Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu, where she leads the women’s education and training initiative. Marcelle Lee is also an Instructional Specialist with the Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) CyberCenter where she teaches cybersecurity courses, develops training and supports industry partnerships. Marcelle also co-founded a cybersecurity services company earlier this year, Fractal Security Group, LLC. Marcelle transitioned to the field of cybersecurity after working for many years in operations and project management in both the public and private sectors. She holds multiple degrees and is currently working on her MPS in Cybersecurity at UMBC. Marcelle has also earned several industry certifications including GCIA, CCNA, CompTIA Security+ and Network+, AccessData’s Certified Examiner (ACE), and DC3’s Cyber Incident Responder credential. Marcelle is an active volunteer in outreach and training in the cyber arena, with a particular interest in encouraging women and girls to consider positions in the field. She also speaks publicly on a variety of cybersecurity topics. She is a cyber-competition enthusiast and has placed in several, including the DC3 Digital Forensics Challenge, Mid-Atlantic CCDC, the Maryland Cyber Challenge, and the Maryland Digital Forensics Investigation Challenge. She is also involved with several local and industry associations, including the Chesapeake Regional Tech Council, Leadership Anne Arundel, AFCEA, ISSA, and frequently attends industry workshops and seminars. She sits on several boards and committees and when not behind a computer or in front of a class she enjoys reading, biking and hiking, and spending time with her family.

Questions/Topics

1. How did you get your start in information security?
2. Women hold 56% of all professional jobs in the U.S. workforce, but only 25% of IT jobs (ncwit.org). Why is that?
3. Is it more about education of the younger crowd and raising awareness?
4. What characteristics of IT may not appeal to women?
5. Or is it the other way around, women do not want to enter the field of IT due to some preconceived notions?
6. What can we do to encourage women to become a part of the IT security field?
7. You’ve been quoted as saying “She added that women tend to problem-solve differently than men.” What are the difference in problem solving skills across gender? I despise the stereo type that information security is a “boys club”, what can we do do break down this stereotype? (Other than a true female version of our hack naked logo ;)
8. What types of things are bing taught in the workshops?
9. At the risk of making my own stereotype, we’ve interviewed dozens of penetration testers who do social engineering, and without question they are all in agreement that women are statistically more successful at social engineering engagements, is this something you cover in your courses and tell the younger generation? (if you in fact believe it is true)
10. How does one get involved with the mentorship program and what does that entail?

Five Questions

1. Three words to describe yourself
2. If you were a serial killer, what would be your weapon of choice?
3. If you wrote a book about yourself, what would the title be?
4. If you had super powers, what would they be?
5. Pick two celebrities to be your parents.

 http://wiki.securityweekly.com/wiki/index.php/Episode387

Increasing Diversity in Tech

Description:

Look around the room and what do you see? A lot of white guys, right? So we love white guys but we’d like to see more diversity. Women and minorities are vastly under-represented in the tech arena. The Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu is actively working to change the playing field and we need your help! We would like to share some statistics and also our personal experiences in order to start a dialog about how we can all make a difference.

http://www.bsidesdc.org/

Founder/CEO Lisa Foreman-Jiggetts is the 2014 Americas Information Security Leadership Award winner in the categories: Senior Information Security Professional and Community Service Star

See this year's winners

Americas Information Security Leadership Awards (ISLA) nominations are now closed. Please check in May, 2015 for the next Call for Nominations. You can nominate an information security or management professional from the private or public sector in North, Central and South America, with the exception of the U.S. federal government (recognized through the GISLA Program), for their outstanding leadership and achievements in workforce improvement. 

• Senior Information Security Professional (examples include: CSO, CISO, information security manager or senior security manager with significant information security management responsibilities) who has significantly contributed to the enhancement of the information security workforce by demonstrating a leadership role in any information security workforce improvement initiative, program or project. Candidates in this category typically should have at least five years of work experience directly related to information security. 
• Information Security Practitioner who has distinguished themselves for implementing and/or managing the implementation of a component of a security program (examples include: managing a security awareness and training program and, conducting difficult, complex security evaluations) Candidates in this category typically should have at least three years of work experience directly related to information security.
• Up-and-Coming Information Security Professional who is a new, rising star in the information security field. The project, improvement or initiative may not relate to leadership as with the other categories, but rather something that relates to their current position or educational work (e.g., university research project, implemented emerging technology, or outstanding work in security operations).  

https://www.isc2.org/aisla/default.aspx