Virginia Announces Support for Cyber Experts Program to Teach Online Security to Schoolchildren

Nov. 18, 2009 - PRLog -- Palm Harbor, Fla., U.S.A. – (ISC)2® (“ISC-squared”), the not-for-profit global leader in educating and certifying information security professionals throughout their careers with more than 66,000 members worldwide, today announced that the Virginia Department of Education and the state office of the Attorney General are supporting the (ISC)2 Safe and Secure Online program, a free nationwide initiative to bring certified cyber security experts into classrooms to teach schoolchildren about protecting themselves online.

Upon request and availability, (ISC)2 certified member volunteers will visit schools to deliver the interactive Safe and Secure Online presentation designed for children ages 11-14, teaching them how to protect themselves in an increasingly cyber-connected world by tackling such concerns as social networking, cyberbullying, viral emails, spam, identity theft and more.  Using compelling materials developed by former school teachers and presented by certified information security professionals, the program is offered to any school in the country at no cost.

“Virginia has made great strides in bringing cyber safety education to children, but we realize there is still much work to be done,” said Gene Fishel, chief of the Computer Crime Section, Virginia Attorney General’s Office.  “The (ISC)2 Safe and Secure Online program is unique in that it goes beyond curriculum and brings top security experts from business and government into schools to talk directly to kids about responsible computing and personal safety.”

“We encourage all middle schools in Virginia, as well as other states throughout the country, to request that an (ISC)2 volunteer come to their school to share this valuable information,” Lan Neugent, assistant superintendent for Technology and Career Education for the Virginia Department of Education, added.

For schools to request a Safe and Secure Online presentation, education officials can e-mail safeandsecure@isc2.org.  (ISC)2 will in turn notify its volunteers of the request and try to match an expert in their region.  To date, there are more than 600 volunteers in the U.S. program since it was announced last month. Virginia is the first state to express its support for the initiative.

“In many cases, the young adults are the most technically savvy user in the family, which is why it’s important to educate the kids themselves,” said W. Hord Tipton, CISSP-ISSEP, CAP, CISA, executive director of (ISC)2.  “Our goal is for the information communicated in the (ISC)2 Safe and Secure Online presentation to serve as a jumping-off point for kids to start a dialogue with their parents about their online behaviors and what to do if a situation arises.”  

The (ISC)2 Safe and Secure Online program officially kicked off in Virginia last month at Swanson Middle School in Arlington, Va., where (ISC)2 security expert Dan VanBelleghem, CISSP, of NCI Information Systems, Inc. delivered a one-hour cyber security presentation and led a discussion with 15 middle school children.  Officials from the state Attorney General’s Office and the Virginia Department of Education were also in attendance.

“We were very happy with the presentation by the cyber security expert, especially after seeing how the students were so engaged in the discussion,” said Chrystal M. Forrester, principal of Swanson Middle School. “The safety of our children is our first concern, and teaching them how to protect themselves online is an integral part of those efforts.”

For more about the (ISC)2 Safe and Secure Online program, please visit http://cyberexchange.isc2.org/safe-secure.aspx.

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About (ISC)²
(ISC)2 is globally recognized as the largest membership body of and as the Gold Standard for certifying information security professionals. Celebrating its 20th anniversary, (ISC)² has over 66,000 certified members in more than 130 countries. Based in Palm Harbor, Florida, USA, with offices in Washington, D.C., London, Hong Kong and Tokyo, (ISC)2 issues the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and related concentrations, Certified Secure Software Lifecycle Professional (CSSLP), Certification and Accreditation Professional (CAP), and Systems Security Certified Practitioner (SSCP) credentials to those meeting necessary competency requirements. (ISC)² also offers a continuing professional education program, a portfolio of education products and services based upon (ISC)2’s CBK®, a compendium of information security topics. More information is available at www.isc2.org.

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