August 17, 2021 • Volume 24, Issue 16 • Complimentary • BlufftonSun.com
INSIDE • O’Neill re-scheduled for Lowcountry Speaker Series 10A • History getting uncovered on social media page 14A • Students at math camp learned to love numbers 18A • Bluffton woman’s book tells tales of Bluff’s early days 22A • OLLI program great for elder learners 24A
Cybersecurity education, professionals top business needs By Gwyneth J. Saunders CONTRIBUTOR
Cyber attacks are a daily occurrence, and they don’t always happen to huge firms with deep pockets. During the past Fourth of July weekend, for example, the Dublin-based IT solutions developer Kaseya was a cyberattack victim, and it is estimated that 800 to Dean Bushey 1,500 of its small to medium-sized business clients may have been compromised by ransomware. In May of this year, a different type of attack caused a similar shortage when the Colonial Pipeline, headquartered in Alpharetta, Ga., was forced to close operations and freeze its IT systems. Colonial became the victim of a cyberattack by a Russia-linked cybercrime group known as DarkSide. Colonial Pipeline provides about 45% of the gasoline, diesel, home heating oil, jet fuel, and military supplies distributed to the East Coast – 100 million gallons of fuel transported daily from Texas to New
York, including a segment through the South Carolina Upstate. To help business owners and others prevent these types of attack, the University of South Carolina-Beaufort is offering a Cyber Resilience Course from Oct. 3 through Nov. 4 for anyone interested in developing a security systems plan of action. It is specifically designed for small and medium-sized businesses but is open to anyone. The 25-hour online course will concentrate on the requirements necessary to meet various levels of compliance with the Department of Defense Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC). The course provides an understanding of DOD cybersecurity requirements necessary as a contractor with the federal government. “To our knowledge it is the only substantive, online course of its type being offered in our region at present,” said Warren Parker, chairman of the South Coast Cyber Center in Beaufort. The center is a 501(c)(3) partnership that includes USCB, Technical College of the Lowcountry, the Beaufort Digital Corridor and Beaufort County Economic Development Corporation. “Our basic purpose is to enhance cy-
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bersecurity education with cyber workforce development, encouraging cyber startups and the attraction of cyber firms to the Beaufort region,” Parker said. “We think the area is one of our strengths. We think there’s a real opportunity, given the fact there is about a 300,000-plus shortage of cybersecurity professionals.” The cyber center’s plans are to help
recent graduates, people leaving the military, and other residents find high-paying jobs by providing affordable and relevant cybersecurity education and training. “The field is growing faster than any other profession every year. We’ve got a four-year university and a two-year tech-
Please see CYBER SAFE on page 8A