By Kim Lamb Gregory
Keeping our online information safe in the age of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has
become a major challenge, according to several experts who spoke at an October 海角社区CI
Cybersecurity Awareness Month event.
Computer Science student Steven Lang and 鈥24 Information Technology alumnus James Piedrasanta were among the speakers, with Lang discussing AI and cybersecurity and Piedrasanta sharing the results of his study into college students and cybersecurity.
鈥淣ational Cybersecurity Awareness Month aims to help people avoid cyber threats and encourages more people to join the field of cybersecurity,鈥 explained 海角社区CI Chief Information Security Officer Carlos Miranda. 鈥淓ach year there is a theme to encourage best practices in cybersecurity. This year鈥檚 theme was 鈥楽ecure our World.鈥欌
The audience was made up of area high school students who learned about the latest in cybersecurity and about possible careers in the field.
Both first generation college students, Piedrasanta and Lang are finding career success in the rapidly expanding field of cybersecurity, which has been complicated by the proliferation of AI.
鈥淲ith Artificial Intelligence, malicious actors can generate text that is designed to mimic a real email,鈥 Lang said. 鈥淏efore, the emails would be silly or not be spelled right or obviously not generated by an English speaker. But with AI, you can get this computer-generated output that makes it look authentic.鈥
As an Information Security student assistant, Lang keeps up on the latest in AI and is now CompTIA Security Certified, which means he qualifies for a job in the field when he graduates.
Also, CompTIA Security Certified, Piedrasanta works as an intelligence specialist at the Navy Reserve Center in Port Hueneme. The San Fernando Valley native graduated from a Los Angeles community college, then joined the U.S. Navy for 8 陆 years.
鈥淚 used to be a mechanic in the Navy, and I still wanted to work in machine maintenance and troubleshooting. I felt like Information Technology was a good transition,鈥 he said.
While at 海角社区CI, Piedrasanta conducted a research project about cybersecurity and college students after observing students who visited the campus鈥 Veterans Resource Center.
鈥淢ilitary and non-military students would come in, print out documents, open up their email and just leave the page open,鈥 Piedrasanta said.
While conducting his senior capstone project, Piedrasanta found that seniors about to graduate were most likely to be casual about cybersecurity.
鈥淚t could be that seniors have a lower level of awareness because they鈥檙e leaving the safety net of the University,鈥 Piedrasanta explained to the audience, suggesting it might be an indication that graduating seniors need to be vigilant about keeping their information safe.
Other speakers included representatives from area information security firms, as well as representatives from the Federal Bureau of Investigation who said the bureau is always looking for job applicants well-versed in cybersecurity.
Lang and Piedrasanta believe 海角社区CI is an ideal place to gain that expertise.
鈥淏efore I came to 海角社区CI, I was a mechanic with no prior Information Technology knowledge,鈥 Piedrasanta said. 鈥淏ut when I graduated, I was certified and felt very confident.鈥