2019 ICC Speakers
Dr. Victor Benjamin
Combining Human- and Machine-cognitive Power for Detecting Automatons within Social Media
Abstract: Social media bots are responsible for the spread of misinformation, scams, malware, and other exploitative behavior. Social bot detection is a very traditional topic that has seen an arm’s race between bot authors and those trying to develop techniques to stop them. In recent years, many social media users have become cognizant that social bots can possess harmful influence on social media. The user interactions and responses to potential bot-generated content contains a level of human-cognitive power that may be extracted and used to augment traditional machine learning approaches. This research develops a framework based on computational linguistics and machine learning to capture this human-curated information and integrate it within machine decision-making.
Bio: Victor Benjamin is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Information Systems at the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. He also serves as the co-director of the ASU Actionable Analytics Lab. Dr. Benjamin earned his bachelor's, master's, and doctorate in Information Systems at the University of Arizona. Professor Benjamin's research is in the area of natural language processing, web mining, cybersecurity, machine learning, and social media analytics. His research has been published in scholarly journals, including Management Information Systems Quarterly, Journal of Management Information Systems, and Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology.
Dr. Russell Brewer
Assessing Juvenile Cybercriminality in an Australian Cohort
Abstract: This paper explores the ways in which young people experience the Internet as a potentially criminogenic medium. To date, little research has explored the possible links between the mundane, ubiquitous use of digital communication technologies by young people and involvement in delinquency in online contexts. The current empirical study seeks to address this gap, by investigating how a young person’s digital pursuits (i.e. relative access, technical competencies, and exposure to pertinent technologies, Internet sites and digital services), as well as various developmental considerations, are linked to delinquent online encounters – be they tentative engagements of a naïve or non-criminal kind or deliberate, more serious forms of technologically-mediated criminality. Drawing on data collected from a cohort of adolescents enrolled at secondary schools across a large Australian city, the results establish significant relationships between many of these concepts, but also flag that online delinquent encounters amongst young adolescents are unlikely to correspond with serious criminal involvements, with such activities being episodic and for the most part trifling. The results further highlight the need for a better understanding of the role of digital communication technologies on pathways into cybercrime.
Bio: Dr Russell Brewer is a Senior Lecturer in Criminology at the University of Adelaide. He has a PhD from the Australian National University. His research interests include cybercrime, youth delinquency, crime prevention and policing. He has published his research findings through several leading publication outlets, holds multiple nationally competitive grants, and has been called upon by Government Agencies both domestically and abroad to advise on policy.
Russell is an Investigator on several current research projects, including the 5-year Australian Research Council funded Digital Youth Research Project (www.DigitalYouthResearch.org), as well as the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Sciences Council funded project entitled EconoMical, PsycHologicAl and Societal Impact of RanSomware (www.emphasis.ac.uk).
Dr. Raymond Choo
Cyber security threat and forensic intelligence
Abstract: Cyber threat intelligence and analytic is among one of the fastest growing interdisciplinary fields of research bringing together researchers from different fields such as digital forensics, political and security studies, criminology, cyber security, big data analytics, machine learning, etc. to detect, contain and mitigate advanced persistent threats and fight against organized cybercrimes. In this presentation, we will discuss some of the challenges underpinning this inter- / trans- /multi-disciplinary field as well as research opportunities (e.g. how can we leverage advances in deep learning to better predict malicious criminal activities?).
Bio: Kim-Kwang Raymond Choo holds a Ph.D. in information technology from Queensland University of Technology, Australia. Prior to starting his Cloud Technology Endowed Professorship at UTSA, Professor Choo spent five years working for the University of South Australia, and five years working for the Australian Government Australian Institute of Criminology. He was also a visiting scholar at INTERPOL Global Complex for Innovation between October 2015 and February 2016 and a visiting Fulbright scholar at Rutgers University School of Criminal Justice and Palo Alto Research Center (formerly Xerox PARC) in 2009. His areas of research include big data analytics, cyber security (offensive and defensive) and digital forensics. In 2016, he was named the Cybersecurity Educator of the Year - APAC (Cybersecurity Excellence Awards are produced in cooperation with the Information Security Community on LinkedIn), and in 2015 he and his team won the Digital Forensics Research Challenge organized by Germany's University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. He is the recipient of the 2018 UTSA College of Business Col. Jean Piccione and Lt. Col. Philip Piccione Endowed Research Award for Tenured Faculty, IEEE TrustCom 2018 Best Paper Award, ESORICS 2015 Best Research Paper Award, 2014 Highly Commended Award by the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency, Fulbright Scholarship in 2009, 2008 Australia Day Achievement Medallion, and British Computer Society's Wilkes Award in 2008. He is also a Fellow of the Australian Computer Society, an IEEE Senior Member, and an Honorary Commander of the 502nd Air Base Wing, Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston.
Mr. David Connett
Current Trends in Automotive Cybercrime
Bio: David Connett is the Cybersecurity Process and Tools Technical Manager at Aptiv, an autonomous mobility company. David’s interest in cybersecurity began when he was 14 in the world of hacking video games, and tracking cyberbullies. He also has experience in software development, data collection/analysis, and security research. His hobbies include composing music, ham radio, video games, tennis, and recreational shooting. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Information Systems and a Master’s Degree in Cybersecurity.
Dr. Cassandra Cross
The Challenge of Reporting Cybercrime in Australia
Abstract: In November 2014, the Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network (ACORN) was established. This is a central, self-reporting, online referral mechanism for many cybercrime incidents in Australia. In late 2018, through a successful Freedom of Information process, an evaluation of ACORN completed by the Australian Institute of Criminology was released. The evaluation contains some fairly negative findings, including over three quarters of victims were dissatisfied with the outcome of their report as well as the very low percentage of reports that lead to police investigations. This presentation explores the findings of the ACORN evaluation and places them in a broader context in order to better understand the challenges that exist for the policing of cybercrime. It highlights the disparity in victim expectations compared to the realities that police face. It also canvasses the unintended consequences that have impacted on the ability of police to focus exclusively on their remit. Overall, this session draws attention to some of the larger systemic issues surrounding the policing of cybercrime rather than focusing all attention on police.
Bio: Dr Cassandra Cross is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Justice, Queensland University of Technology. Previously, she worked as a research/policy officer with the Queensland Police Service, where she commenced research on the topic of online fraud. In 2011, she was awarded a Churchill Fellowship to examine the prevention and support of online fraud victims worldwide. Since taking up her position at QUT in 2012, she has continued her research into online fraud, across the policing, prevention and victim support aspects. With colleagues, she has received highly competitive Criminology Research Grants, the first in 2013 to conduct the first Australian study into the reporting experiences and support needs of online fraud victims, and another in 2016 to examine the policing of cybercrime in Australia. She is co-author (with Professor Mark Button) of the book Cyber frauds, scams and their victims published by Routledge in 2017.
Mr. Joshua Dalman
Understanding RDP Ransomware
Abstract: RDP based Ransomware and Office 365 intrusions are quickly becoming ubiquitous. RDP ransomware actors such as Samas, Dharma/Crysis, Globe Imposter, and others have wreaked havoc among medical facilities, businesses, state and local government offices and infrastructure. Likewise, Office 365 intrusions involving social engineering, phishing emails, and unauthorized access have also become common place. This talk will discuss common tactics used by ransomware and Office 365 attackers and steps that can be taken to help mitigate these threats.
Bio: Joshua M. Dalman is a second generation digital forensic examiner. Mr. Dalman has nearly a decade of digital forensics and incident response experience and has tackled hundreds of cases. Mr. Dalman has also earned recognition as an instructor, having developed material and trained countless members of the law enforcement community. Mr. Dalman has a Master of Science degree in digital forensics from the University of Central Florida.
Dr. Benoit Dupont
Lessons in cyber-resilience
Abstract: Resilience is generally defined as the ability of an organization to cope with and recover after a major shock. It has become very trendy in the cybersecurity field but remains an elusive concept. This presentation will discuss how this concept applies to the practices of cyber-risk managers and incident response teams: why is it becoming so central in their toolbox? What are its origins and components? How is it implemented and what lessons have been learned by those who have had to overcome shocks such as major hacks and massive data breaches? In a world where cyber-risks have become unavoidable, and to a certain extend unpreventable, while posing an existential threat to the survival of digitally-dependent organizations, this presentation will offer some preliminary insights on a research project that examines how the technical and cultural dimensions of cyber-resilience interact in large complex organizations in general, and in financial institutions in particular. It will introduce the existing standards, methodologies, practices and metrics advocated to enhance an organization’s cyber-resilience, and will share some of the preliminary results obtained from interviews conducted with the CISOs, CROs, and incident response professionals of major financial institutions, as well as their service providers and regulatory authorities. A core issue will be to identify how organizations can prepare to deal with uncertainty in a highly connected environment where they engage with a sprawling network of partners, competitors, service and security providers.
Bio: Benoit Dupont is professor of criminology at the Université de Montréal, where he holds the Canada research chair in Cybersecurity. He is also the Scientific Director of the Smart Cybersecurity Network (SERENE-RISC), one of Canada’s Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE). SERENE-RISC brings together government, industry, and academic partners in order to facilitate the mobilization and uptake of evidence-based cybersecurity knowledge. His research interests focus on the governance of security and the use of networked initiatives to enhance offline and online safety, the coevolution of crime and technology (and in particular the social organization of the hacking ecosystem), and the behavioral dimensions of cybercrime prevention. He has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed articles and chapters on these subjects. He sits as an observer on the board of CCTX (the Canadian Cyber Threat Exchange) and serves on the advisory committees of the National Research Council’s Digital Technologies Branch and Quantum-Safe Canada.
Mr. Seth Edgar
Bio: Seth Edgar is the Chief Information Security Officer for MSU, leading the MSU Information Security team. Prior to joining MSU in 2014, Seth worked as a security researcher and engineer for the MITRE Corporation and Naval Postgraduate School. Seth’s research work and interests focus on incident response, reverse engineering, malware trends, penetration testing, and digital forensics.
Dr. Erin Harbinson
The Personal, Social, and Psychological Characteristics of Cybercrime Offenders under Federal Community Supervision in the United States.
Abstract: This presentation will cover the results of a study conducted to describe the characteristics of individuals who have been convicted of cybercrimes, mostly “cyber-dependent” offenses (McGuire & Dowling 2013). The study used data from the case management and risk assessment system used by the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, the agency tasked with supervising individuals on federal probation or supervised release. The analysis reviewed the demographics, supervision information, and risk and needs assessment scores of people convicted of cybercrimes. In the study of 813 cybercrime offenders, most were white (72.7%), male (77.7%), and 38.2 years old on average. Most of the individuals serving supervision terms were classified as low risk to reoffend, but many still had risk factors in the areas of criminal history, education/employment, and social network domains. These findings are slightly different from the general offender population, indicating that individuals who commit cybercrimes, especially cyber-dependent offenses, may have a different profile of personal, social, and psychological characteristics than the general offender population. The presentation will review the results from the analyses in the study and discuss how these findings contribute to our understanding of the people who commit cybercrimes, as well as informing correctional agencies on recommendations to supervise cybercrime offenders who are convicted and serving terms of community supervision.
Bio: Erin Harbinson is a Research Fellow for the Robina Institute of Criminal Law and Criminal Justice at the University of Minnesota Law School in the United States. She received her PhD in criminal justice from the University of Cincinnati and while pursuing her doctorate, worked for the University of Cincinnati Corrections Institute assisting criminal justice agencies with the implementation of evidence-based practices by evaluating correctional programs and conducting training for correctional staff on risk assessment, core correctional practices, and effective programming. Prior to joining the Robina Institute, Dr. Harbinson worked at the Council of State Governments Justice Center as a policy analyst, where she provided technical assistance to states implementing justice reinvestment legislation and data driven policies. Dr. Harbinson’s research interests are in corrections, criminal justice policy, and white-collar crime. In her current role at the Robina Institute, she works on a variety of probation and parole research projects that focus on topics related to risk assessment, supervision conditions, revocations policies, fines and fees, health, and parole release decision-making.
Dr. Thomas Hyslip
Bio: Dr. Thomas Hyslip is currently the Resident Agent in Charge of the Department of Defense, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Cyber Field Office, Eastern Resident Agency. Prior to joining the DCIS in 2007, Dr. Hyslip was a Special Agent with the US Environmental Protection Agency, Criminal Investigation Division, and the US Secret Service. Throughout his 19 years of federal law enforcement, Dr. Hyslip has specialized in cybercrime investigations and computer forensics. Dr. Hyslip has testified as an expert witness on computer forensics and network intrusions at numerous federal, state, and local courts. Dr. Hyslip is also an adjunct Professor at Norwich University. Dr. Hyslip received his Doctor of Science degree in Information Assurance from Capitol College in 2014.
Dr. Gary Kessler
Cryptography, Passwords, Privacy, and the 5th Amendment
Abstract: Military-grade" cryptography has been widely available at no cost for personal and commercial use since the early 1990s. Since the introduction of Pretty Good Privacy (PGP), more and more people encrypt files and devices, where we are now at the point where our smartphones are encrypted by default. While this ostensibly provides users with a high degree of privacy, compelling a user to provide a password has been interpreted by some courts as a violation of our 5th Amendment protections, becoming an often insurmountable hurdle to law enforcement lawfully executing a search warrant. This presentation will explore some of the issues around this complex legal and social issue.
Bio: Gary C. Kessler, Ph.D., CISSP, is a Professor of Cybersecurity and Chair of the Security Studies & International Affairs Department at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida. Gary's academic background is in mathematics and computer science, and his research interests include network protocols, digital forensics, and cybersecurity management and policy, particularly related to maritime and aviation. Gary has been affiliated with the Hawaii, Northern Florida, and/or Vermont Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Forces since 1999. Gary has written more than 75 articles, papers, books, or book chapters, and is a regular speaker at various conferences, notably the National Cyber Crime Conference. More information can be found at https://www.garykessler.net
Mr. Nils Kessler
Bio: Nils Kessler has been an Assistant U.S. Attorney since 2001, and is currently the Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property crimes coordinator for the Western District of Michigan. Prior to joining the Department of Justice, he served five years on active duty in the Air Force Judge Advocate General’s Department. As an AUSA, Nils has prosecuted firearms offenses, narcotics trafficking, sex crimes and financial fraud. From 2012-2018 he served as Chief of the Criminal Division and supervisor of the Financial Crimes Section. Nils is a graduate of the University of Virginia (1992) and the University of Virginia School of Law (1995).
Dr. Nir Kshetri
The Evolution of the Cyber-Insurance Market
Abstract: The cyber-insurance market currently is at a nascent stage. However, thanks to growing cyber-threats, organizations are finding it more imperative to have cyber-insurance. Cyber-insurance is likely to enhance firms’ cybersecurity performances. For instance, a company is required to strengthen cybersecurity in order to buy coverage at a lower rate. This presentation examines the current state of the global cyber-insurance market and discusses various forces that are in play to shape the evolution of the rapidly growing cyber-insurance market.
Bio: Nir Kshetri is Professor at University of North Carolina-Greensboro and a research fellow at Kobe University. He has authored eight books and about 130 articles in various journals. In December 2018, he spoke at the Plenary Session, Digital Technology and Sustainable Development: South-South Cooperation in the Digital World at the Hong Kong Summit of the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC)and the Finance Center for South-South Cooperation (FCSSC). Nir was a consultant for the Asian Development Bank during 2017-2018. He also participated as lead discussant at the Peer Review meeting of the UN’s Information Economy Report 2013 and 2015. Nir was the winner of IEEE IT Professional’s Most Popular Paper Award in 2018. Two of his papers were selected among the Top 50 Influential Papers in Blockchain by the 2019 Blockchain Connect Conference. Nir has been quoted/interviewed and/or his work has been featured by hundreds of media outlets worldwide such as Wall Street Journal, Foreign Policy, Scientific American, Bloomberg TV, CBS News, TV Mundo (Peru), ABF TV (Brazil), Fortune, Time, Christian Science Monitor, Asia Times, Channel News Asia, New York Daily News, U.S. News & World Report, New Boston Post, Observer and Salon. In 2018, he gave a TED Talk about the potential roles of cryptocurrencies in fighting poverty which can be viewed through this link.
Dr. Rutger Leukfeldt
Cyber Resilience of Organisations
Abstract: Organisations have to deal with cyber-attacks on a daily basis. In 2017, 20% of small and medium organisations in the Netherlands became victim of a cyber-attack with financial consequences. As our society becomes more and more digitized, it can be expected that the number of cyber-attacks will only increase. Therefore, organizations need to be resilient against these kind of attacks. In this presentation, we will discuss a novel framework of cyber resilience integrating models from resilience engineering and human behaviour. Furthermore, the results of a pilot study on nearly 100 SMEs in the Netherlands and Canada will be presented. The framework provides organizations with diagnostic capability to better prepare for emerging cyber threats, whilst assuring the viability of human aspects of cyber security critical to their business continuity.
Bio: Dr. Rutger Leukfeldt is senior researcher and the cybercrime cluster coordinator at the Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR). Furthermore, Rutger is director of the Cybersecurity & SMEs Research Group of the Hague University of Applied Sciences. Over the last decade, Rutger worked on a number of cybercrime studies for the Dutch government and private companies. Examples include studies into the modus operandi and characteristics of cybercriminals, a nation-wide cybercrime victim survey and a study into the organization of Dutch law enforcement agencies responsible for the fight against cybercrime.
His PhD-thesis was about the origin and growth processes of cybercriminal networks. In 2015, Rutger received a Marie Curie Individual Fellowship (EU grant for promising researchers) to study the changing organization of organized crime due to the use of Information Technology. In 2017, Rutger received a Veni grant (Dutch grant for highly promising researchers) to carry out a study into the online and offline pathways into cybercriminal networks. Rutger is currently the chair of the Cybercrime Working Group of the European Society of Criminology (ESC) and member of the International Interdisciplinary Research Consortium on Cybercrime (IIRCC).
Mr. Rob McCurdy
Bio: Rob McCurdy is the Chief Information Officer (CIO) of Michigan State University (MSU), responsible for primary leadership of strategic, financial, and policy initiatives affecting information technology (IT) at the university. MSU IT implements and maintains technology solutions for a user base of over 300,000, providing the platform for MSU to excel in research, education, and outreach.
Mr. Douglas McKee
Minor Flaws, Major Impact
Abstract: This talk will introduce the audience to some of the research performed by McAfee’s ATR team. A deeper drive into several recent projects in the medical and IoT fields will demonstrate how attackers can use small design flaws to have a large impact on business and homes.
Bio: Douglas McKee is a Senior Security Researcher for the McAfee Advanced Threat Research team, focused on finding new vulnerabilities in both software and hardware. Douglas has an extensive background in penetration testing, reverse engineering, malware analysis and forensics and throughout his career has provided software exploitation training to many audiences, including law enforcement.
Mr. Tim Mielak
Using Risk Analysis to Evolve Defense in Depth
Abstract: In this world of evolving threat and limited resources, having an ability to articulate the relationship between risk tolerance and security controls can mean the difference between a well-funded, well-staffed security program and one that struggles to find backing. Using traditional and non-traditional expressions of this risk/control relationship, the true benefit of a holistic security posture can be conveyed and leveraged without the need to suffer a wake-up-breach.
Mr. Seth Sattler
Bitcoin Victimization: Where the past meets the future
Abstract: As bitcoin gains more exposure, the industry has seen scams that previously occurred through conventional financial instruments migrate to bitcoin kiosks and exchanges. This migration has created numerous challenges for companies to help identify fraudulent activity and prevent scams from occurring. This presentation will take an in-depth look into how these past scams have adapted to current technology while exploring industry techniques to prevent victimization and scam adaptation.
Bio: Seth Sattler is a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist, who currently works for DigitalMint, a bitcoin point of sale company. Mr. Sattler has been responsible for the design and implementation of DigitalMint’s complex anti-money laundering program and helped to establish industry compliance standards for the bitcoin kiosk industry. Prior to joining DigitalMint, he worked numerous years for Huntington National Bank's (HNB) AML/BSA department designing and tuning money laundering typologies. Prior to his professional career, Mr. Sattler graduated from Michigan State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Criminal Justice.
Ms. Nicole Selzer
Bio: Nicole Selzer is a fully qualified lawyer with specialisation in criminal law. She completed the general legal preparatory service in both Germany and in the United States at the University of Cincinnati at the School of Criminal Justice. Currently she is a research associate and PhD candidate at the Faculty of Law and Economics at the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg. Her PhD-thesis focuses on organised crime and cybercrime and the question to what extent companies are affected by both phenomena. Her research interests also include critical infrastructure. Since 2014, she has served as a research associate at the Economy & Crime Research Centre (Halle/Saale) as well. In this position, she joins various projects. She has been working on the Economic Crime Surveys by Pricewaterhouse Coopers/Bussmann, which focuses on cybercrime and organised crime. Furthermore, Nicole Selzer has been assigned to studies regarding organised crime and the effectiveness of anti-corruption programs in an international comparative study.
Tamara Shoemaker
Inspiring Michigan's Youth using the National CyberPatriot Program
Abstract: Learn about this inspiring virtual cyber defense competition sweeping the nation. The founder of the Michigan CyberPatriot program will explain this fast growing national competition and how you can get in the Game! CyberPatriot reaches down into K-12 to help show students the various education and career pathways available to them in Cybersecurity. They learn cybersecurity principles and how to keep themselves and their devices safe and secure, while having fun!
- Learn about one of the only Cybersec competitions for Junior High School and High School students in the nation
- Learn how to become involved in the growth of this program across Michigan