TWIN FALLS, Idaho (KMVT/KSVT) — Cybersecurity professionals from across the country are spending the week in Twin Falls, teaching public sector employees how to better protect critical systems.
Cyber threats aren’t just a concern for major corporations. Experts say local governments, schools and county offices are increasingly becoming targets for hackers.
“These smaller cities and counties don’t always have the funding or resources to get the training and tools they need. But they’re still protecting really important systems,” said Josh Crews, an instructor with the National Cyber Security Preparedness Consortium.
The National Cyber Security Preparedness Consortium is a federally funded program supported by the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA. The consortium has spent decades providing free cybersecurity training in all 50 states and U.S. territories.
“Most of our classes is county, state, city, school, college employees, so people that work in the public sector. It’s open to anybody and it’s free,” Crews said.
This week, participants are taking part in a four-day course focused on proactive cyber defense.
“We’re putting on the hat of an attacker and learning the same techniques the bad guys use. Then students get to apply those lessons in attack-and-defense exercises,” Crews said.
While the goal isn’t to turn these professionals into hackers, instructors say understanding how cyber criminals operate is one of the best ways to stop attacks before they happen.
“You learn how to gather information, how to find vulnerabilities in systems, how to take advantage of those and create back doors to get back into them and erase your tracks and all the things that hackers do,” Crews said.
Crews says the consequences of a successful cyber attack can be far-reaching.
“Imagine if your county gets hit with ransom ware. Suddenly, 911 operations may not work. You can’t get a marriage license, a business license,” he said.
Participants in the class come from a variety of public-sector backgrounds, bringing real-world experience to the discussions and hands-on exercises.
While the threats continue to evolve, instructors say one thing remains constant: preparation is the best defense.
“These are professionals. These aren’t college students. These people working it day in and day out. They’re boots on the ground. They’re seeing this stuff in real time,” Crews said.
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