Physical security professionals with an interest in building or developing cybersecurity credentials will be able to learn about the educational opportunities available at Capitol Technology University when they attend the 2015 ASIS International Annual Seminar and Exhibits in Anaheim, California.
The ASIS event, which will take place from September 28 through October 1, is considered the top networking and educational event in the industry, with as many as 25,000 attendees expected. Capitol Technology University representatives, including director of graduate recruitment Xavier A. Richards, will be at the Exhibit Hall, ready to answer questions and provide information about programs and resources.
Ron Martin (pictured), a member of Capitol’s faculty, will also be a featured panelist at the conference. Martin, who is CEO of Consullition, LLC and director of the Open Security Exchange, is an ASIS regional vice president for Louisiana and Mississippi. He will join fellow panelists on Tuesday (September 29) in a discussion of cyber security concerns in physical security, and again on Wednesday (September 30), addressing the topic of credentialing challenges and practical solutions.
Martin says increased convergence between the physical and cyber security domains is beginning to redefine the industry, and professionals want to keep up.
“Most of the folks attending this conference specialize in areas such as door locks, card access, cameras and so on,” Martin said. “They haven’t gone deeply into the cyber aspect of security – it hasn’t been a mainstay. That’s changing, however, and Capitol is in a good position to engage this audience and connect them with opportunities for cybersecurity training and education.”
Most security devices are now linked to computers, which are in turn connected to networks, raising the possibility that an adversary or criminal could manipulate physical assets as well as compromising digital ones.
Although the convergence is gaining momentum, the academic world has been slow to keep up. Capitol is among a small group of higher educational institutions that provide appropriate training, says the chair of the university’s cybersecurity department, William Butler.
“We’re one of the few colleges and universities that is integrating physical and cybersecurity at the academic level, through specific courses that we teach and also through our labs,” Butler said. “That makes us an appealing choice.”
Among other resources, Capitol is home to the Identity, Credentialing and Access Management (ICAM) Laboratory. This innovative facility, supported by more than a dozen corporate sponsors, provides hands-on training within the context of the federal government’s ICAM initiative, designed to establish a comprehensive approach to the management of digital identities, credentials and access control.
Supplementing Capitol coursework, the lab offers students a means to develop academic knowledge and professional skills that will enable them to advance their employment opportunities in physical security, information assurance, business and acquisition management.
ICAM Lab sponsors include 3M, Aralia, AssureTec, Axis Communications, CondorTech Services, DRM Institute, Open Security Exchange, Paxton, Quantum Secure, SIA, Viscount Systems and Waverly Labs.
According to Martin, “Capitol is one of the best-kept secrets in the Beltway region, and we’re excited to help get the word out via our presence at ASIS. There’s a whole industry out there, with personnel hungry to learn more about cybersecurity, and Capitol has the expertise and the resources to meet that need.”
Representatives of the university will be at Booth 385 of the ASIS conference from Monday (September 28) through Wednesday (September 30). For more information, contact Xavier A. Richards, director of graduate recruitment, at xarichards@captechu.edu or by phone at 301.369.2309.