By JESSALYN KIRCHHOFF
Tiger Media Network
Fort Hays State University’s Information Enterprise Institute will host CyberCon 3.0 on Friday. The event is scheduled from 8:30 am to 3:00 p.m. in the Memorial Union Ballroom.
Assistant Professor of Informatics Jason Zeller gives some background on the overall objective of CyberCon.
“The primary purpose of CyberCon is to invite FHSU students, the local business community, and other Kansas schools (high schools, community colleges, and universities) to share Cybersecurity information and activities to gain student interest in the field of Cybersecurity and Information Assurance,” Zeller said.
FHSU Cybersecurity Club President Chance Anderson adds to Zeller’s statement by explaining the Cybersecurity club has always played an essential role in helping get CyberCon off the ground each year.
“Every year, we ask our members for thoughts and ideas on what they would like to see as well as what they think other kids would enjoy,” Anderson said.
For this year in particular, Anderson provides a detailed overview of the wide variety of activities and things for attendees to do this year.
“For activities, we are having a Virtual Reality (VR) lab where one can play a scavenger hunt designed by the CyberTigers LLC group here on campus, and networking labs where students and guests can learn along with solving networking-related issues,” he said.
There will also be a “Capture The Flag” (CTF) that allows students to solve puzzles by using hacking-based skills.
On top of all of this, Anderson emphasizes that CyberCon will be hosting industry professionals from multiple companies to talk to guests about cybersecurity, along with internship opportunities for students.
“Some of the professionals coming out are from companies like Nex-Tech, Hays Med, and Honeywell and will talk about a wide variety of topics from cybersecurity within businesses to how cybersecurity in healthcare works and is implemented,” he said.
Amongst all of that, there will also be door prizes guests have a chance to win
Zeller takes this time to speak on the history of CyberCon at FHSU.
“CyberCon was actually a conference we put on back when I was a student in my Master of Information Assurance program in 2010 here at FHSU,” he said. “A student organization called Information Assurance Student Organization (IASO) created it to help support the Center of Academic Excellence accreditation with the National Security Agency.”
Zeller continues by explaining the Cybersecurity Club pushed to bring the event back in 2022 after the recent accreditation renewal as a means to share cybersecurity knowledge and information between students, potential students, and local/national industry.
“With the help of the Cybersecurity Club, CyberCon has successfully recruited students to FHSU and exposed them to industry leaders such as those from local businesses and the Department of Defense SPACECOM program,” he said. “We invite industry leaders and graduate students alike to speak in our sessions, and we have grown to add hands-on activities to keep the interest of those who are just getting started in the field.”
Anderson shares the behind-the-scenes work that goes into the con every year and mentions that the club usually starts this process months in advance by gathering ideas and thoughts from all of the members of the club.
“As far as the staff and students here at FHSU associated with the project, we have met weekly for months planning this out as we do every year,” he said. “There is a ton of coordination needed to pull something of this size off. I would like to thank everyone involved, especially Michelle Weigel. She has been the one to help coordinate all the logistics for this event with things such as food service and the door prizes we receive.”
In preparation for tomorrow’s event, Anderson details that the club also met together earlier this week to help stuff goodie bags that each attendee will receive and the club will be setting up the tables, activities, and the tech that runs the whole thing later today. He continues by thanking his team for all of the work they have put into this event.
“Without them, this event would be impossible, and I am forever grateful for all of the actively participating members within our club.”
Anderson lists a few things he believes people will benefit from CyberCon.
“First off, just learning new things outside of the classroom is a huge advantage that most students need to seek out more,” he said. “Secondly, being able to have possible prospective students come and join in on the fun gives them the chance to see what FHSU is all about and meet their possible future professors. Thirdly, some students have used this opportunity to connect with industry professionals and land an internship or career with them later on just from connecting with them at the event. To sum it up, the opportunities are endless.”
Registration is still open and can be done using the QR code in the flyer or by using this link: https://www.fhsu.edu/iei/cybercon/.
This registration will include access to all CyberCon 3.0 sessions, a continental breakfast, lunch, and a swag bag. Registration is free.
Questions can be directed to Chance Anderson, FHSU Cybersecurity Club president at clanderson8@mail.fhsu.edu or Jason Zeller, assistant professor of Informatics at jlzeller@fhsu.edu.
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