EVERETT – It’s called “The Wall” and it could help thwart cybersecurity attacks that threaten us all.
Everett Community College’s newest tool is a 6-foot-tall, 15-foot-long $500,000 interactive machine that’s being used to train a new generation of students for jobs in cybersecurity.
Students can use the industrial trainer to control the system, spot vulnerable points and even hack it themselves, said Dennis Skarr, information technology instructor at Everett Community College.
Here’s where it gets rad: The Wall has real pumps, water tanks, valves and electrical circuits that can be programmed to simulate the workings of a water treatment plant or an assembly line, for example, and the software that controls their functions.
The equipment can be used to model real-world cyber attacks and create a hands-on experience for students, said Skarr, who teaches cybersecurity classes at the college.
“We can’t do it exactly, but we can wing it and make it fairly accurate,” he said.
Lately, those types of cyber threats are hitting close to home.
In February, a cybersecurity attack rattled local authorities. The city of Lynnwood disclosed that the third-party company it uses to bill utility customers had been targeted by cyber criminals.
The Seattle-based payment processor detected the data breach when its servers were seized by ransomware. The malicious software holds hostage an organization’s files, making them inaccessible. To unlock them, cyber criminals usually demand a ransom.
The Port of Everett, the Alderwood Water & Wastewater District and the cities of Monroe, Kirkland, Redmond and Seattle were among those ..
Support the originator by clicking the read the rest link below.
