CyberSpotlight: MBA Alumna Advocates for Opportunity in Cyber Field
Teresa Merklin, MBA ’05
Teresa Merklin, MBA ’05, has worked for Lockheed Martin for nearly two decades. After beginning at the company in software management, she is now a fellow specializing in cyber risk assessment and engineering for cyber resiliency.
CyberSpotlight: M.S. Alumna Founded Cyber Platform, Aims to Enrich Cyber Community
Dominique West, MS ’19
Dominique West, MS ’19, was one of UD’s first cybersecurity scholarship recipients and will be starting in the Doctor of Business Administration program this fall. We asked her to share a little of her story with us.
Q&A: UD Senior Works with Cyber Professor to Launch WildChain
Clarissa Skipworth, BA ’22
Computer science major Clarissa Skipworth, BA ’22, interned with Associate Professor of Cybersecurity Renita Murimi, Ph.D., CISSP, as they launched the blockchain company WildChain. Using blockchain technology, they are aiding global conservation efforts. We wanted to learn more about Skipworth’s unique opportunity and what she’s learned on the job.
Q&A: Dr. Murimi’s Launch of WildChain and Its Impact in Conservation Efforts and Blockchain Technology
Renita Murimi, Ph.D., CISSP
Associate Professor of Cybersecurity Renita Murimi, Ph.D., CISSP, has been on the frontlines of blockchain technology. Murimi began teaching in the Gupta College of Business in fall 2019. We wanted to learn more about how this incredible idea came about and the waves it will make in the world of conservation.
CyberSpotlight: From Intern to Chief of Staff, M.S. Student Finds Passion in Cyber
Alexa Reubens, MS ’22
Alexa Reubens’, MS ’22, journey from entry-level analyst at Citrix to its cybersecurity chief of staff was a challenging one for the self-described introvert. Her joining the company as a full-fledged employee coincided with Citrix consolidating the information security teams, and Reubens became a scrum master to help manage this process. Not long after, Reubens found herself coordinating an intense cybersecurity incident response investigation.
For Gupta Professor, 22 Patents Part of Passion for Learning, Teaching
Chuck Easttom, Ph.D., D.Sc.
Gupta College of Business Adjunct Instructor Chuck Easttom, Ph.D., D.Sc., is in the final stages of his third doctorate and just started his fourth master’s. For him, learning and teaching constitute both career and hobby. He considers all of his work — whether teaching, writing, consulting or serving as an expert witness on patent and cybersecurity court cases — part of the same thing: learning and then conveying what he’s learned to someone else in an understandable way.
Second Gupta Cyber Professor in Six Months Awarded Patent
Ismail Guneydas
Officially listed as U.S. Patent No. 20,190,251,052, “USB Baiting Method and Design,” Ismail Guneydas’ patent is a method for training personnel that provides a lure device, including a unique lure device identifier; provides a data-gathering application to read files and registry entries from a first network-attached computer; recognizes a plug-in event when the lure device is connected to the first network-attached computer; and associates a user with the first network-attached computer.
Professor Awarded Patent, Draws from Cybersecurity Experience
Branden Williams, MBA ’04
In September 2019, Branden Williams, MBA ’04, accomplished a long-held dream: being awarded a patent. Williams’ patent draws from his extensive work in information technology and cybersecurity and comes up with a novel way to process payment systems. He has run strategy for two cybersecurity groups — both of which focused on firms that accept credit/debit cards as a form of payment — and written a number of books on the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).
From Around the Web:
Interview: Dr. Sandra Blanke, Cybersecurity Educator
Sandra Blanke, Ph.D., CISSP, CRISC
“One of my most interesting and challenging classes was led by Dr. Sandra Blanke, who teaches courses in cyber and technology within the master’s and doctoral programs at the UD Gupta College of Business. Her work spans over 20 years and includes a wealth of research and development in the field of cybersecurity. I have learned so much from her work with the university and outside initiatives. Read more about this incredible voice in the field.” - Dominique West, MS ’19
Cybersecurity Summit Sparks Investment Hopes
Dr. Renita Murimi, CISSP
“Renita Murimi, a University of Dallas associate professor of cybersecurity, called the summit ‘a positive step in the right direction’ in an interview with Capital.com. She said the participating companies collectively process a large amount of data and ‘contribute significantly’ to ‘the data-driven economy.’”
Secret CSO: Brian Wrozek, Optiv Security
Brian Wrozek
Adjunct Professor Brian Wrozek is a seasoned cybersecurity executive with 20+ years of experience in IT and information security and management. As vice president of corporate information and physical security at Optiv, Wrozek oversees all corporate security functions including cyber operations, incident response, vulnerability management, and security governance activities.