CHRIS SORENSEN: TECH TIME – Program teaches students about Cybersecurity

BY CHRIS SORENSEN

CyberPatriot is an afterschool program for high school and middle school students that offers an introduction to the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to excel in the field of cybersecurity. The kids typically meet one or two days a week to learn concepts and tasks from volunteer industry professionals, and then get to practice with a collection of hands-on activities. 

For schools that are considering starting a program, MCISSE, the Michigan CyberPatriot organization has been offering a series of shortened, mini lessons in the form of a summer camp. The June and July camps were hosted virtually this year, allowing students from all over the state to attend. Attendance was up this year since the virtual (Zoom) format removed the distance impediment. 

Physically travelling from the Upper Peninsula to a camp in Detroit was no longer an issue. We even had students and an instructor attending from Beaver Island, 32 miles out in the middle of Lake Michigan! The summer camp is an easy way for kids to get an introduction to the full, year-long program. 

The camp week agenda runs for two hours each morning, Monday through Friday. Each day campers learn about various cyber topics from people who work in the industry. Then they get to practice with hands on labs. At the end of the week, there is a mini scavenger hunt where kids each get a copy of the same virtual computer and they try to find and fix as many security vulnerabilities as they can in a 60 minute window. At the end, prizes are awarded along with digital badges and certificates that can be attached to future resumes. 

Employers on career sites such as LinkedIn have noted they value experience in the CyberPatriot program when evaluating potential job applicants. And the demand for cyber jobs is huge. The cyber career website cyberseek.org estimates there are currently over 7,000 open positions in the state of Michigan for people with cybersecurity experience. That number jumps to over 464,000 jobs nationally! Check https://www.cyberseek.org/ for state-by-state comparisons. 

One of the unique aspects of hosting the camp virtually is the use of virtual computers. Since the cybersecurity topics focus on Windows and Linux operating systems, each camper needs two computers to practice with — one running Windows, and one running Linux. Asking families to supply each student with two computers (plus a third one to actually attend the camp on Zoom) is not practical, so the Michigan CyberPatriot team arranged for each student to have access to virtual computers. 

Similar to how an aircraft pilot in training uses a flight simulator to practice take-offs and landings without fear of crashing, a virtual computer allows the operator to install/uninstall programs, add user accounts, and change configurations without risk to their own personal computer, and without having to purchase any additional hardware and software.  

Each student was given access to a website where the virtual Windows and Linux computers were hosted, and they were able to complete the lessons and hands-on labs as though they were sitting at the actual computer.  

They learned how to look for accounts that had weak passwords, how to look for unauthorized software, how to identify signs of hacker intrusion, how to turn on the built-in firewall, how to turn on automatic updates, how to use the command line, and much, much more. These are the typical duties of an entry-level cybersecurity professional. 

There are currently over 180 CyberPatriot teams across Michigan – five of them in the Downriver area, including Trenton. The CyberPatriot program gives students an opportunity to explore a rapidly growing field they can take advantage of right out of high school if they wish, and provides a roadmap for those seeking a college degree in cyber. Students or parents interested in exploring CyberPatriot should contact their school administrator or the Michigan CyberPatriot team at https://micyberpatriot.com/ for more info. Visit https://www.uscyberpatriot.org/, https://micyberpatriot.com/ and https://www.cyberseek.org/ 

Chris Sorensen has been in the IT industry for over 30 years and is currently a cyber-security specialist for a fortune 10 company. In his spare time, he enjoys helping family and friends stay safe and secure on the Internet with tips and techniques delivered in a fun, non-technical style. Readers are welcomed to send questions to info@trentontrib.com. 

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