Augusta University has been recognized for its contributions to the field of cybersecurity, the school announced Tuesday.
Computer Security Online, a publication of tech and media company Foundry, presented AU with its CSO50 Award. The annual award recognizes 50 organizations for innovative projects addressing cybersecurity challenges. Other recipients this year included Aflac, Allstate, Cisco, MasterCard and United Airlines.
The only other universities recognized were the University of Miami and the University of Texas Police at Houston.
CSO presented the awards in a ceremony during its annual CSO50 Conference in Fort McDowell, Ariz. earlier this month. Heather Roszkowski, associate vice president of cybersecurity solutions and chief information security officer for AU, accepted the award on the university’s behalf.
The CSO50 Award credited Augusta University’s adaptability and commitment to defending against cyberattacks, especially amid a dynamic landscape where new threats are always on the horizon.
SIEGE CyberOps, AU’s security operations center, is housed in the Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center, from where it protects the school along with AU Health.
“These teams put in long hours working around the clock to monitor, detect, analyze, investigate and respond to cyber threats against Augusta University,” said Roszkowski, lauding the IT staff, and even student assistants, for their work with SIEGE.
Michael Casdorph, AU’s chief information officer and vice president of Information Technology and Enterprise, notes that the cybersecurity team aims to leverage IT risk management and information security practices to protect and honor the confidentiality of students, patients, faculty and staff.
“While our cybersecurity team and the entire IT team are critical to leading and implementing our cybersecurity practices, great cybersecurity is a team sport,” Casdorph said, commending university president Brooks Keel for his commitment “to enhancing [AU’s] cybersecurity posture.”
Keel himself also praised the university cyber security professionals upon the announcement of the award.
“Through our many partnerships, AU has become a destination university for aspiring cybersecurity professionals,” Keel said. “A testing ground for cutting-edge technologies and a space for fostering cyber partnerships and knowledge exchange.”
Skyler Q. Andrews is a staff reporter for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
