Forge Institute of Little Rock has launched a new program designed to give small and mid-sized businesses valuable cyber and information security guidance.
The unique program, “Ask a CISO,” makes available a variety of experts and security leaders to answer pre-submitted questions in a panel type of forum. The initial panel will include four CISOs and directors of security, Beth-Anne Bygum of Acxiom, Phil Clark of AECC, Jason Cathey of Bank OZK and Devin Shirley of Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield.
“Ask a CISO” is the first program developed by the Arkansas Cyber Defense Alliance (ACDA), which is an alliance of cybersecurity leaders working to position Arkansas as a “cyber defense state” and is the private-public alliance referenced by ACT 1085 of 2019 the “Arkansas Cybersecurity Initiative (ACI).”
”When we worked to pass ACT 1085 of 2019, it was critical that both the private sector, academia and public come together to align efforts to further secure Arkansas from cyber criminals and to leverage cybersecurity as a strategic economic initiative. The ACDA is the implementation of those goals and “Ask a CISO” is the first step to developing capability in our startup and small business communities,” said Forge CEO Lee Watson.
Devin Shirley, CISO of Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield, said, “Everyone should be concerned about security, from the highest ranked executive to the newest service representative and from the largest to the smallest business. Therefore, security should not only be a technical issue, but a business issue.”
The “Ask a CISO” program is conducted online in a question-and-answer panel-based format. It is presented as a panel of three to five CISOs assembled quarterly, with participants receiving access to Forge Institute’s Learning Management System (LMS) with all recorded panels for up to 12 months.
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