Category: Current Projects

JP Auffret to Co-Lead First-of-its-Kind Mason Center for Excellence in Government Cybersecurity Risk Management and Resilience

January 17, 2023 / By John Hollis

George Mason University will expand its research and real-world impact in Northern Virginia with a pair of projects that were made possible by the efforts of U.S. Representative Gerry Connolly (D-VA) to address cybersecurity and mental health care needs.

Mason will receive $1 million in federal funding to support the creation a first-of-its-kind Mason Center for Excellence in Government Cybersecurity Risk Management and Resilience, and nearly $1 million for the Saving Lives and Decreasing Health Disparities project. Funding for both efforts came as part of the federal omnibus appropriations bill that President Biden recently signed into law to fund the government through Fiscal Year 2023.

Connolly, whose 11th District includes Fairfax, is a senior member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee and his party’s lead on the Subcommittee on Government Operations.

“George Mason University is a pillar of our community, but the effects of its world-class education and world-changing research can be felt throughout the country,” said Connolly.

The future Center for Excellence in Government Cybersecurity Risk Management and Resilience will act as a strategic partner in federal government cybersecurity and IT modernization efforts, translate state-of-the-art research on technology modernization and cybersecurity in federal practice, collate and disseminate best practices on federal government agency cybersecurity, and foster U.S. government cybersecurity organizational capacity.

The center will bring together experts in IT modernization, cybersecurity, and critical infrastructure systems to develop and provide in-person, hybrid, live virtual, and online executive education, tabletop exercises and workshops for federal government IT and cybersecurity executives and middle managers. In addition, the center will leverage Mason’s Institute for Digital Innovation, which integrates transdisciplinary centers and labs with deep interdisciplinary expertise across all facets of cybersecurity research, governance, policy, and education.

Amarda Shehu, associate vice president of research at the Institute for Digital Innovation, and professor of computer science with Mason’s College of Engineering and Computing, will operate the center along with J.P. Auffret, the director of research partnerships and grants initiatives in the School of Business and the director of the Center for Assurance Research and Engineering in the College of Engineering and Computing.

“This is further evidence of the value and depth of Mason’s research, programs, and outreach in cybersecurity,” said Ken Ball, dean of the College of Engineering and Computing. “This funding will help us strengthen our programs and generate new discoveries that will make our nation more secure.”

“We are exceptionally grateful to Congressman Connolly for championing the central importance of cybersecurity for the federal government,” added Shehu and Auffret. “We are excited to engage with federal IT and cyber executives to modernize and secure systems, and advance excellence.”

Mason has a 25-year history in government IT leadership and governance education, including as a founding partner in the U.S. Federal CIO University and as a founding partner in the International Academy of CIO. Mason’s partners include the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Commonwealth Cyber Initiative, the Commonwealth of Virginia state government, the West Virginia state government, Connected DMV, and others.

Andre Marshall, Mason’s vice president for research, innovation and economic impact, praised Connolly for his continued leadership in the areas of federal cybersecurity and IT modernization.

“I am so proud to have secured funding for the Mason Center for Excellence in Government Cybersecurity Risk Management and Resilience, the first of its kind, and I can’t wait to see the results in action,” he said.

International Academy of CIO (IAC) 2021 Mini Conference Announces Speakers

IAC 2021 Mini Conference “COVID-19, Digital Resilience and Economic Recovery in the Age of AI, Robotics and 5G” Announces Speakers

DATE: December 7th & 8th, 2021 (Virtual)

TIMES:
December 7, 2021 AT 7:30 AM – 1030 AM – Eastern Time (US and Canada)
8:30 PM – 11:30 PM

TOKYO TIME
December 8, 2021 AT 7:30 AM – 10:30 AM – Eastern Time (US and Canada) 8:30 PM – 11:30 PM TOKYO TIME

The mini conference will explore technology and country responses to COVID-19, the subsequent and ongoing economic recovery and current industry and supply chain challenges.

The mini conference will also consider new opportunities arising from the development of AI, Robotics and 5G in light of COVID-19 and the economic recovery.

The IAC 2021 Mini Conference brings together government, private sector and academia speakers and participants.

Please RSVP here: https://iac2021miniconference.eventbrite.com

Speakers include:
-Hong-Wei Jyan, Director General, Department of Cyber Security, Executive Yuan (Cabinet), Taiwan (ROC)
-Hiroko Kudo, Ph.D., Professor Public Policy and Management, Chuo University, Japan
-Alexander Ryzhov, Ph.D., Professor, Head of Chair, Russia Presidential Academy of Public Administration (RANEPA)
-Naoko Iwasaki, Ph.D., Professor, Institute of eGovernment, Waseda University, Japan
-Luca Buccoliero, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Marketing, Bocconi University, Italy
-Elena Bellio, Ph.D. Professor, Department of Marketing, Bocconi University, Italy
-Suhono Supangkat, Ph.D., Director of Smart Cities and Communities Innovation Centre, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Indonesia
-Andrew Beklemishev, Vice President – Central Asia, IDC, Kazakhstan
-Jirapon Sunkpho, Ph.D., Vice Rector and CIO, Thammasat University, Thailand

-Fengchun Yang, Ph.D., Director, Academy of eGovernment, Peking University, China
-Sundar Balakrishna, Ph.D., Special Secretary, Department of Information Technology, Electronics, and Communications, Government of Andhra Pradesh, India
-Voahangy Rakotonirina, Ph.D., Professor, Economics, Professor, University of Antananarivo, Madagascar
-Kenneth Wang, Director, National Development Council, Taiwan
-Serge Adouaka, Director, Technology and ICT Leadership Accelerator, Central African Republic
-Naoko Mizukoshio, Founder and President, Leftright Law and IP
-Shaukat Ali Khan, CIO, Aga Khan University and Hospitals, Pakistan
-Tomi Dahlberg, Professor, Information Technology, University of Turku, Finland
-Pierre El Haddad, Professor, Management, St. Joseph University, Lebanon
-J.P. Auffret, Ph.D., George Mason University, President, International Academy of CIO, USA

For more information, please go to: https://iacio.org/iac-2021-mini-conference-december-virtual-international-academy-of-cio. Or please contact J.P. Auffret at [email protected].

About the International Academy of CIO (IAC):
The IAC or International Academy of CIO was founded in 2006 in Japan by co-founders including Japan, USA, Indonesia, Philippines, Switzerland and Thailand. The IAC members, partnerships and alliances now span all regions with economies such as China, Cambodia, Netherlands, India, Korea, Laos, Hong Kong, Macao, Peru, Singapore, South Africa, Nigeria, Taiwan, United Kingdom, Vietnam, Italy, Russia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. The IAC has active participation from more than 50 countries and partners with NGOs and multilateral organizations including APEC, OECD and ITU.

For more information, please go to: www.iacio.org.

Collaborating Globally by Jennifer Anzaldi

Dr. J.P. Auffret is the director of the Center for Assurance Research and Engineering (CARE) in the College of Engineering & Computing and director of the Research Partnerships and Grants Initiatives in the School of Business at George Mason University

Dr. J.P. Auffret is the director of the Center for Assurance Research and Engineering (CARE) in the College of Engineering & Computing, director of the Research Partnerships and Grants Initiatives in the School of Business at George Mason University and is the co-founder and current president of the International Academy of CIO (IAC).

The IAC was founded in 2006 in Japan by co-founders from Japan, the United States, Indonesia, Philippines, Switzerland and Thailand. The IAC members, partnerships and alliances now span all regions with economies including China, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Kazakhstan, Korea, Laos, Macao, Netherlands, Nigeria, Peru, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, United Kingdom, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.

“We have active participation from more than 50 countries and foster and facilitate CIO and IT leadership education programs, development of CIO institutions including government CIO Councils and associated IT policies, and application of technology to major societal challenges,” says Auffret.

Key initiatives are the annual publication of the Waseda – IAC Digital Government Rankings, a book series with IOS Press, a CIO accreditation program for CIO master’s degree programs and an IAC annual conference which has been hosted in twelve different countries.

The IAC partners with NGOs and multilateral organizations including Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

What began as a meeting between Auffret and Professor Toshio Obi from Waseda University in the spring of 2004 in Arlington, Virginia has blossomed into a collaborative partnership.

During the last year, the IAC activities have included hosting a series of “Technology and Country Experiences in COVID-19 Response” webinars highlighting innovations from Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and other countries.

The IAC 2021 Mini Conference will be virtual and is planned for December 7th and 8th focusing on COVID-19, Digital Resilience and Economic Recovery in the Age of AI, Robotics and 5G.

For more information, please go to: https://iac2021miniconference.eventbrite.com

Bringing the ‘economic miracle’ to Central African Republic November 2nd, 2021 / By Benjamin Kessler

Serge Adouaka-Ngoimale worked with Mason's J.P. Auffret (right) to learn more about information and communication technology during his six-week stay at the university Photo by Lathan Goumas/Strategic Communications

In 2019, Serge Adouaka, an IT executive from Central African Republic (CAR), paid a six-week visit to George Mason University as part of his Humphrey Fellowship, a Fulbright-affiliated program for scholars and professionals from developing countries. His Mason host was J. P. Auffret, who directs both the Center for Assurance Research and Engineering (CARE) in Mason’s College of Engineering and Computing and the Research Partnerships and Grant Initiative for Mason’s School of Business. This short stint laid the groundwork of a lasting partnership between the two that may help foster economic growth in one of the world’s most challenging contexts.

Adouaka was the seventh Humphrey Fellow to be hosted by Auffret, who believes that information and communication technology (ICT) “for development and entrepreneurship is a good path to enable careers and raise a country’s per-capita GDP and standard of living while reducing poverty.”

During Adouaka’s time at Mason, the pair explored how ICT ecosystem development could point the way toward a brighter future for CAR. Adouaka returned home inspired and determined to put these ideas into action.

He worked with Mason and the University of Bangui to launch an accelerator for CAR-based tech founders and start-up managers. The U.S. State Department has provided funding for the project. Participants in the three-month program receive mentoring from the Mason community, as well as from experienced professionals within the CAR and neighboring countries.

The initial cohort of 20 entrants represents a wide range of areas, including agriculture tech, health and geographic systems, computer design, system integration, IT placement, video games and financial technology (fintech). Their primary goal for the three months is to devise a “next-step” plan for achieving scale, with the help of their mentors.

It is also hoped, however, that by forming relationships with other accelerator participants and mentors from CAR and beyond, they will foster a culture of entrepreneurship in the small African country and build strong professional networks that are more than the sum of their parts.

Almost as soon as the program began, there were hints that this was starting to happen. Recently, participants decided to hold some meetings face-to-face at the University of Bangui instead of remotely. The final presentation that officially concludes the program’s first iteration—where participants will unveil their future plans—will also be an in-person event.

CAR’s small population and challenging rural terrain mean that networking across national borders is essential for fueling future business growth. Any viable plan for scale must involve penetrating regional markets outside CAR. Sub-Saharan Africa has an increasing number of regional role models. For example, five-year-old Nigerian fintech unicorn Flutterwave has expanded to 20 African countries and even has an office in San Francisco (so it can tap into the $48 billion remittances business driven by the sub-Saharan Africa diaspora). Microloan app Tala launched in Kenya in 2014 and has since spread to the Philippines, Mexico and India.

To be sure, CAR has unique challenges. It has experienced only intermittent intervals of peace in its 61 years as an independent nation. To this day, the government and people, security forces and U.N. peacekeepers struggle to quell rebel violence and stabilize the country. Amid these volatile conditions, CAR has been left out of the economic growth enjoyed by many other sub-Saharan countries. Rwanda, for example, is on a path to becoming an upper-middle-income country within 15 years despite the turbulence of its recent history. Could CAR, too, join in the “African economic miracle”?

Auffret cites CAR’s increasing mobile phone adoption as a meaningful sign of hope. Mobile technologies enable developing countries to leapfrog the need for heavy physical infrastructure such as telephone wires and bank branches.

Also, Auffret says that underdeveloped countries like CAR may also be able to use their relatively open regulatory environment to gain an advantage in commercial drone technology. Already, companies in Kenya and Nigeria are widely deploying drones for last mile delivery, cartography and other business purposes.

In the meantime, ambitions run high for the Mason accelerator. With the initial three-month program nearly concluded, plans for the second cohort are underway. Eventually, Auffret and Adouaka would like to secure support from private companies, both in Africa and the United States.

Another short-term goal is to recruit major international development agencies as venture partners. Auffret expects these influential parties will share his view that the uncertain security situation in CAR makes this accelerator—and ICT innovation in general—an urgent priority for the country.

“Increasingly the Mason mission is to contribute and have impact globally, and this project is one of many Mason initiatives aligned with the U.N. Strategic Development Goals,” Auffret said. “Through international work, such as this accelerator, one can gain a better sense of the wonder of the world, as well as make a contribution to the well-being of societies.”

For the article, please go to: https://www.gmu.edu/news/2021-11/bringing-economic-miracle-central-african-republic

International Academy of CIO (IAC) 2021 Mini Conference

IAC 2021 Mini Conference “COVID-19, Digital Resilience and Economic Recovery in the Age of AI, Robotics and 5G”

DATE: December 7th & 8th, 2021
TIMES: December 7, 2021 AT 7:30 AM – 1030 AM – Eastern Time (US and Canada)
8:30 PM – 11:30 PM TOKYO TIME
December 8, 2021 AT 7:30 AM – 10:30 AM – Eastern Time (US and Canada)
8:30 PM – 11:30 PM TOKYO TIME

The International Academy of CIO (IAC) 2021 Mini Conference is set for December 7th & 8th, 2021 with timely topics featuring COVID-19, Digital Resilience and Economic Recovery in the Age of AI, Robotics and 5G. The mini conference will explore technology and country responses to COVID-19, the subsequent and ongoing economic recovery and current industry and supply chain challenges.

The mini conference will also consider new opportunities arising from the development of AI, Robotics and 5G in light of COVID-19 and the economic recovery. The IAC 2021 Mini Conference brings together government, private sector and academia speakers and participants.
Please check back for speakers and agenda.

For more information, please go to: https://iacio.org/iac-2021-mini-conference-december-virtual-international-academy-of-cio Or please contact J.P. Auffret at [email protected].

The IAC promotes and facilitates CIO and IT Executive leadership education and education standards; government CIO and IT governance policies and institution building related to CIOs and CIO Councils; and application and innovation of ICT such as mobile, IoT and blockchain in areas including ICT and ageing society, smart cities, and ICT and natural disasters.

The IAC publishes the annual Waseda University – IAC Digital Government Rankings now in its 14th year and the Journal of CIO and Digital Innovation. The IAC also partners with IOS Press on a Global E-Governance book series. In education, the IAC accredits CIO master’s degree programs and provides CIO certificates to graduates as well as directly partnering on training through the Asia CIO University Network on topics including CIO and data science. The IAC hosts an annual conference and partners on conferences and workshops with governments and NGOs such as APECTEL, OECD and U.N. For more information, please go to: www.iacio.org.

Student Career in Cyber

Central African Republic Technology Entrepreneurship Accelerator

The Central African Republic (CAR) Technology Entrepreneurship and ICT Leadership Accelerator for start-up and early stage technology company founders and managers in the Bangui region has the goals of assisting and mentoring early stage company founders and managers to increase their potential for building successful and viable businesses and furthering their overall ICT leadership capacity. In addition, the Accelerator’s goals include contributing to fostering a culture of entrepreneurship in Bangui and Central African Republic and developing a network of technology entrepreneurs.

Funded by the U.S. Department of State, the project partners are George Mason University, the University of Bangui and recent Humphrey Fellow and Central African Republic technology executive Serge Adouaka. Mr. Adouaka was a Humphrey Fellow in 2018 – 2019 studying at the Maxwell School at Syracuse University and then doing his professional affiliation with us at George Mason and focusing his study on ICT for Development and the Central African Republic.

The initial pilot will be comprised of two classes of 20 to 25 technology related business founders and managers with an initial one to two day kickoff at the University of Bangui and then subsequent weekly virtual engagement over the course of three months during the spring and summer of 2021. The curricula is based upon best practices in CIO and technology leadership programs and experiences of Africa based technology accelerators.

During the three months the founders and managers will develop plans to strengthen their businesses and further their individual technology leadership abilities. The program will conclude with a final day of presentations and discussion at the University of Bangui. The weekly engagement during the three months of the program between the launch and the conclusion will be SMS based.

A key element of the Technology Entrepreneurship Accelerator will be 15 - 20 technology business mentors in both the Central African Republic and in the U.S. The Central African Republic and U.S. mentors will provide insight and guidance to the business founders and managers as well as form a cohort themselves providing for exchange on U.S. and Central African Republic business policy and culture.

__________________________________________________________________________

Accélérateur d’entrepreneuriat technologique et leadership des TIC en République centrafricaine

L’accélérateur d'entrepreneuriat technologique et de leadership des TIC en République centrafricaine (RCA) pour les fondateurs et les dirigeants d'entreprises technologiques en début de carrière dans la région de Bangui a pour objectif d’aider et d’encadrer ces fondateurs et dirigeants d’entreprises afin d’accroître leur potentiel de création d’entreprises prospères et viables, de renforcer leur capacité globale de leadership en matière des TIC. En outre, les objectifs de l’accélérateur consistent à contribuer à la promotion d’une culture de l’esprit d’entreprise à Bangui et en République centrafricaine et à développer un réseau d’entrepreneurs technologiques.

Financé par le Département d’État des États-Unis, les partenaires de ce projet sont l’Université George Mason, l’Université de Bangui et le récent boursier Humphrey de la République centrafricaine et cadre de la technologie Serge Adouaka. M. Adouaka a été boursier Humphrey en 2018 – 2019, étudiant à l’école Maxwell de l’Université de Syracuse, puis a fait son affiliation professionnelle avec nous à George Mason en concentrant son étude sur les TIC pour le développement et la République centrafricaine.

Le projet pilote initial sera composé de deux classes de 20 à 25 fondateurs et dirigeants d’entreprises liées à la technologie avec un premier coup d’envoi d’un à deux jours au sein de l’Université de Bangui, puis un engagement virtuel hebdomadaire ultérieur sur une période de trois mois. Les programmes d’études sont basés sur les meilleures pratiques des responsables et leader en informatique et les expériences des accélérateurs technologiques basés en Afrique.

Au cours de ces trois mois, les fondateurs et dirigeants développeront des plans pour renforcer leurs entreprises et développer leurs capacités individuelles de leadership technologique. Le programme se terminera par une dernière journée de présentations et de discussions à l'Université de Bangui. L'engagement hebdomadaire pendant les trois mois du programme entre le lancement et la conclusion sera basé sur le potentiel technologique du SMS.

L’élément clé de l'accélérateur d'entrepreneuriat technologique sera constitué de 15 à 20 mentors en business technologique de la République centrafricaine et des États-Unis. Les mentors de la République centrafricaine et des États-Unis fourniront des informations essentielles et conseils aux fondateurs et dirigeants des entreprises. Aussi bien, ils formeront eux-mêmes une cohorte permettant d'échanger sur la politique et la culture commerciales des États-Unis et de la République centrafricaine.

Cybersecurity on Enterprise Risk and Mobile Security

This NSA granted curriculum development project focuses on two security areas: Enterprise Risk and Mobile Security.

Motivation and Background
With the rapidly increasing role of technology in society and the increasing cybersecurity threat, industry and government have a great need to scale cybersecurity leadership and governance. In turn, there is a great need for educators to scale cybersecurity leadership and governance education and training.

Design
The courses are multidisciplinary, covering leadership and management, technical and engineering and policy.

Course I: Enterprise Risk Management and Cybersecurity Governance

The course provides an introduction and overview of the changing nature of cybersecurity risk management and cybersecurity governance.

Main Topics

Technology Innovation, Adoption and the Changing Nature of Cybersecurity Risk
Enterprise Risk Management, Cybersecurity Governance and Cybersecurity Strategy
Legal and Compliance Landscape
Roles of Boards and CISOs
Benchmarking, Information Asset Classification and Developing a Consensus of Cybersecurity Risks
Developing a Cybersecurity Strategy and Risk Mitigation Program
Enterprise Risk and Cybersecurity Frameworks
Role and Considerations for Cybersecurity Insurance

Learning Outcomes

Describe the cybersecurity risks resulting from new and rapidly developing technologies such as IoT, Cloud and mobile and analyze and describe the changing nature of the cybersecurity threat
Explain the complementary roles of enterprise risk management, cybersecurity governance and cybersecurity strategy
Discuss the evolving role of Boards and executive committees in enterprise risk management and cybersecurity and the evolving role of the CISO
Analyze cybersecurity governance in recent major cybersecurity compromises such as OPM
Apply cybersecurity lifecycle and the elements of identify, protect, detect, respond and recover
Outline the process and considerations for developing a cybersecurity strategy and risk mitigation program including benchmarking and information asset classification

Course II: Mobile Cybersecurity Management

This course provides an introduction and overview of the rapidly changing enterprise mobility environment, associated cybersecurity risks and approaches for developing a mobile cybersecurity strategy.

Main Topics

Mobility and Organization Strategy
The Changing Landscape of Mobile Technologies -from Smart Phones and Tablets to IoT
Mobile Policies and BYOD
Leadership and Governance for Mobile Security
Rapidly Evolving Mobile Device Management Technologies
Mobile Life Cycle Management
Cybersecurity Risk Framework and Mobile

Learning Outcomes

Understand the evolving nature and capability of mobile technologies
Understand mobile security risk including endpoint, network and process/policy
Evaluate mobile cybersecurity policy and BYOD alternatives in light of organization’s cyber strategy
Understand and evaluate new mobile device management technologies
Understand and apply the mobile device life cycle to mobile strategy
Outline the process and considerations and apply to developing a mobile cybersecurity strategy

Contacts

Dr. J.P. Auffret

[email protected]

703-993-5641

City/County Cybersecurity Partnership

Extreme DDoS Defense (XD3)

The threat of distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks has been well-recognized in the data networking world for two decades. Such attacks are orchestrated by sets of networked hosts that collectively act to disrupt or deny access to information, communications or computing capabilities, generally by exhausting critical resources such as bandwidth, processor capacity or memory of targeted resources. The nature of DDoS attacks can span a wide range. Botnet-induced volumetric attacks, which can generate hundreds of gigabits per second of malicious traffic, are perhaps the best-known form of DDoS. However, low-volume DDoS attacks can be even more pernicious and problematic from a defensive standpoint. Such attacks target specific applications, protocols or state-machine behaviors while relying on traffic sparseness (or seemingly innocuous message transmission) to evade traditional intrusion-detection techniques.

The current art in DDoS defense generally relies on combinations of network-based filtering, traffic diversion and ”scrubbing” or replication of stored data (or the logical points of connectivity used to access the data) to dilute volumetric attacks and/or to provide diverse access for legitimate users. In general, these existing approaches fall well short of desired capabilities in terms of response times, the ability to identify and to thwart low-volume DDoS, the ability to stop DDoS within encrypted traffic and the need to defend real-time transactional services such as those associated with cloud computing and military command and control.

DARPA’s Extreme DDoS Defense (XD3) program will focus on three broad areas of opportunity to improve resilience against DDoS attacks. The program aims to thwart DDoS attacks by: (1) dispersing cyber assets (physically and/or logically) to complicate adversarial targeting; (2) disguising the characteristics and behaviors of those assets through networked maneuver to confuse or deceive the adversary; and (3) using adaptive mitigation techniques on endpoints (e.g., mission-critical servers) to blunt the effects of attacks that succeed in penetrating other defensive measures. This research program will include formulation of new algorithms, demonstrations and field exercises with software prototypes, development of performance metrics to assess effectiveness and integration of systems across the three aforementioned areas to maximize overall defensive capabilities.

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