SOCIAL CYBERDEFENSE OF
URBAN CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE

A blog discussing how to leverage social engineering to defend against technical cyberattacks

MIT CYBERSECURITY CLINIC

The new MIT Cybersecurity Clinic (11.274 and 11.074) will be offered in both the fall and spring semester at MIT. 

The Cybersecurity Clinic will consist of four-modules : Cybersecurity for Critical Urban Infrastructure: Understanding the Problem; How the MIT Cybersecurity Clinic Makes Initial Contact with potential Client Agencies; Onsite Assessment of Cybersecurity Vulnerability by MIT Clinic Staff; and Prepare and Submit a Final Cybersecurity Vulnerability Assessment to a Client Agency. MIT students who want to take on field assignments with the Cybersecurity Clinic (for academic credit) must pass the certification examination offered at the end of the fourth module. 

Students who have achieved certification, will work in teams supervised by advanced doctoral and post-doctoral students during the last nine weeks of the spring semester to collaborate with an assigned client agency to prepare a Cyberattack Vulnerability Assessment for a client agency.  

WHO WE ARE

We are developing a new class of non-technical strategies against cyberattacks called Defensive Social Engineering.  Cyber defenders can use Defensive Social Engineering along with technical tools to defeat or compromise attackers. One technique in the Defensive Social Engineering toolbox is Cyber Negotiation. This research is supported by MIT’s Internet Policy Research Initiative (IPRI).  

RESOURCES

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ABOUT THIS BLOG

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Cyberattacks on local governments 2020: findings from a key informant survey

February 21, 2023

This paper published in the Journal of Cyber Policy takes a close look at patterns of cyberattacks, types of attackers, the frequencies of incidents and breaches of local government IT systems, and purposes of attacks based on survey data collected in 2020 by key informants in local governments (CIOs, CISOs, and IT Directors). 

The paper also examines whether and to what extend local governments offer cybersecurity awareness training to their officials and staff and whether a nexus exists between training and these persons support for cybersecurity in their governments.

Get access through your institution at:

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/23738871.2023.2178319