Hilton Coliseum, on the campus of Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, has hosted its fair share of basketball games. But over the weekend of April 21, with the college basketball season long past, the hallowed stadium opened its doors for a competition that involved a different type of net: the internet.<\/p>\n
Nearly 500 high school students from across Iowa traveled to Ames to participate in the IT Olympics, sponsored by the HyperStream branch <\/a>of the Technology Association of Iowa<\/a>. On the Coliseum\u2019s hardwood floor, students participated in events ranging from cyber defense to robotics to app development while coaches and volunteers roamed about. Still more events spilled out into the concourse areas.<\/p>\n In its ninth year, HyperStream helps fulfill the goals of Iowa governor Terry Branstad\u2019s STEM initiative by improving technology education and literacy in the state of Iowa. The taste of competition at the IT Olympics leads some students to consider careers in related fields they hadn\u2019t previously considered.<\/p>\n \u201cI did one competition and I was hooked,\u201d said Daniel Limanowski, a sophomore at Iowa State who now directs the cyber defense event at the IT Olympics. \u201cThey\u2019re just a ton of fun. To be able to form a team and just protect against hackers and work with other teammates \u2014 that\u2019s just a lot of fun.\u201d<\/p>\n The IT Olympics appeal to hardcore technology junkies as well as those with a casual interest in the field.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause of the different tracks, there\u2019s something for everyone,\u201d said Emily Pottebaun, a junior at Adel Desoto Minburn High School who participated in the cyber defense event. \u201cPeople will invite their friends, and people will come in if they\u2019re interested and kind of get roped along and end up enjoying it.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s important, because the state is banking on those types of success stories to ensure the future of cybersecurity in Iowa and the Midwest.<\/p>\n On December 21, 2015, Branstad signed an executive order<\/a> declaring cybersecurity a top priority for his administration. Following the order, the state crafted a detailed strategy for both dealing with large-scale cyber attacks and building up cyber infrastructure within the state.<\/p>\n An offshoot of the state\u2019s strategic plan is the Iowa Cyber Alliance. The alliance aims to increase the size of the cyber workforce in the region and help educate technological laypeople about ways to protect their assets.<\/p>\n Dr. Doug Jacobson, a professor of computer engineering at Iowa State and a leader of the alliance, said the initiative is working with local employers to help students gain experience in the field and show them that cybersecurity is not confined to the coasts.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s job potential,\u201d Jacobson said. \u201cThere\u2019s a way to stay in Iowa, if they want to, to work in cyber.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a misconception that you have to fly 2,000 miles or however far it is in either direction next to a large body of water. You can find a job next to Gray\u2019s Lake, a small body of water.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOne of the other misconceptions is Iowa is not targeted. Why would anybody pick on mom and dad\u2019s manufacturing shop in Ottumwa, Iowa?\u201d Jacobson said. \u201cThere\u2019s plans there. There\u2019s stuff there. There are things of interest.\u201d<\/p>\n Midwesterners are targeted by cyber criminals like everyone else, in part because the criminals often don\u2019t know where their target is even located. Often, the hackers send out a wide net in hopes of catching at least a few victims.<\/p>\n \u201cIt costs them no money,\u201d Jacobson said. \u201cThey can carry out a massive attack with no resources, no capital investment, and all it takes is a small number of hits. When your investment\u2019s almost zero, return on investment\u2019s almost infinite. It\u2019s a pretty lucrative business to be in.\u201d<\/p>\n Jacobson noted common scams involving phony emails pretending to be from US Bank or Wells Fargo or dangerous attachments or links. These sorts of techniques can apply to a wide variety of people, so they\u2019re likely to find more victims.<\/p>\n \u201cTechnology\u2019s taken it to a point where (security) is pretty good,\u201d Jacobson said. \u201cBut the hackers still want in. And the weak point is the person.\u201d<\/p>\n For businesses, the cost of suffering a cyber attack is considerable. In an annual study, IBM found<\/a> the average damage cost of each data breach to be $4 million. The total global cost of cybercrime could reach $2 trillion by 2019<\/a> and shows no signs of slowing. The International Data Group measured<\/a> the annual financial hit from the loss of trade secrets alone to be worth 1-3 percent of a country\u2019s gross domestic product.<\/p>\nThe Cyber Alliance<\/h6>\n[aesop_quote type=”pull” background=”#282828″ text=”#ffffff” align=”left” size=”1″ quote=”\u201cThere\u2019s a misconception that you have to fly 2,000 miles or however far it is in either direction next to a large body of water. You can find a job next to Gray\u2019s Lake, a small body of water.\u201d” cite=”Dr. Doug Jacobson, Professor of Computer Engineering at Iowa State University” parallax=”off” direction=”left” revealfx=”off”]\n
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The erroneous perception that there are no cybersecurity jobs in the Midwest goes hand in hand with another:<\/p>\nThe Cost of a Breach<\/h6>\n