Firasat Khan, senior security project manager for the Center for Strategic IT & Security has accepted the role of the Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (CCDC) State Director for Minnesota. As Director, Khan, a veteran CCDC faculty advisor for the Minneapolis Community & Technical College team, will manage the participation of all Minnesota teams in local and regional events.

In addition to taking on this new role, Khan manages security assessments conducted by the Center for Strategic IT & Security for MnSCU campuses and external institutions.  These assessments involve a comprehensive look at business processes, information technology infrastructure, and employees across all departments and business units that interface with private or sensitive data, especially in a digital format.  The assessments result in a roadmap offering prioritized recommendations to address any information security gaps or weaknesses. 

Khan owns an excellent technical and security background; his most recent activity involved a security and forensics training program for law enforcement agencies and nonprofit organizations. He has developed and implements a training program for the 34 MnSCU institutions which seeks to enhance information security awareness and technical expertise among the technical staffers across the system.  

His expertise positions him particularly well to manage the CCDC, which ranks as one of the most important learning experiences available for security students. Students and faculty prepare for months for the contest which crams an intense dose of real world learning into the one-day state, and two-day Midwest Regional events. As a judge mentioned after the 2008 contest, the participants faced more exposure to threats than most IT professionals do on the job.

According to John Hoffoss, 2009 State and Regional Chief Judge, "The Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition provides some great exposure to those studying information security. By modeling a "real-world" situation, then increasing the intensity ten-fold, every participant is faced with new and novel challenges in team dynamics, time and project management, and evaluating the risk vs. reward of each task. Not to mention the red team regularly throwing each team for a loop. The CCDC provides some great exposure to information security and it's a fun experience that I wish I could've had as a student.

The rigorously juried defensive competition is composed of three sets of teams. The "Red," a team of IT professionals who work to hack and invade the student defended Internet and computer systems; the "White" a team of judges, and the "Blue" of juried teams of college and university participants.

The Midwest Regional CCDC is the first competition that specifically focuses on the operational aspect of managing and protecting an existing "commercial" network infrastructure. Not only do students get a chance to test their knowledge in an operational environment, they also get a chance to network with industry professionals who are always searching for up and coming engineers.  The CCDC provides a unique opportunity for students and industry professionals to interact and discuss many of the security and operational challenges the students will soon face as they enter the job market.

According to Khan, "Based on past experience, the preparation for the competitions is no less than a very intense, hands-on collaborative course in information security.  Students who participate, regardless of outcome, say they come away with increased confidence in their ability to implement and protect IT networks.  They also realize, in a very real way, how important it is for the IT staff in any organization to work in unison with a security mindset as they go about meeting business needs."

For more information, visit the competition website at (www.mwccdc.org).