Forge announces world-renowned speakers for annual Cybersecurity Summit

The two-day summit will be held on October 5th and 6th in Central Arkansas. 

Today, Forge Institute has announced the first set of speakers for the annual Arkansas Cybersecurity Summit. This year’s summit will be held for a full two-days on October 5th and 6th in Central Arkansas. The venue will be announced soon. 

Each year, Forge hosts the Arkansas Cyber Summit as a way to bring industry, critical infrastructure organizations, academia (researchers and students), state and local government, federal agencies and military together to discuss global cyber threat activity, workforce programs/needs, and to raise awareness of opportunities/programs that help Arkansas robust its cyber defenses and increase economic prosperity for our state. This year’s focus is on developing Arkansas as the Cyber Defense State. Topics include Securing the Defense Industrial Base to Grow Arkansas Jobs; Engaging State & Local Government in Cyber Defense; Trust Officer vs. CISO - What Do We Need Now; National Security Risks & Opportunities from Emerging Technologies; and so much more. 

Initial Speakers Announced:

• AJ Gary, Secretary of Public Safety & Director of Arkansas Division of Emergency Management

• Jonathan Askins, Chief Technology Officer, Division of Information Systems, State of Arkansas

• Scott A. Anderson, Executive Director, Forge Institute

• Col. (Ret.) Rob Ator, Director, Military Affairs Council, State of Arkansas

• Wes Nickels, Chief of Staff, Forge Institute & Supervisory Special Agent (Ret.) USAF OSI

• Edward You, National Counterintelligence Officer for Emerging and Disruptive Technologies, National Counterintelligence and Security Center, Office of the Director of National Intelligence

• Krishnan Chellakarai, VP, Chief Information Security Officer, Gilead Sciences

• Chad Causey, Executive Director, Arkansas Aerospace & Defense Alliance

• Malcolm Harkins, Chief Security & Trust Officer, Epiphany Systems

• Becky Passmore, VP Cyber Risk, Kroll

• Beth-Anne Bygum, SVP, Chief Security and Compliance Officer, Acxiom

• Lee Watson, Founder & CEO, Forge Institute

• Dawn Meyerriecks, Former Deputy Director CIA for Science and Technology

• Rob Lee, Founder & CEO, Dragos

• Dr. Philip Huff, Assistant Professor Cybersecurity, UA Little Rock

“This year’s summit is going to be incredible,” said Lee Watson, Founder & CEO of Forge Institute. “We have a full list of Arkansas cybersecurity leaders, collaborators and defenders and several national experts joining in the conversation. Plus, we’ll learn how recent geo-political events are shaping the idea of collective cybersecurity defense.”

Sponsors this year include: Acxiom, Fortinet, UA Little Rock, Tyson Foods, Gentry Professional Services, Mainstream Technologies, SentinelOne, Sullivan Wright Technologies, CriticalStart, Arkansas Aerospace & Defense Alliance, UA Pulaski Tech and the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas. 

Early bird registration ($30) ends today. Regular registration opens tomorrow (Wednesday, August 17th). Attendees must be US Citizens. Lean more, become a sponsor or register at: www.forge.institute/summit

Key Facts

• Summit expected to draw nearly 200 cybersecurity leaders and defenders from all across Arkansas’ industry, critical infrastructure, academic, military, agency and local and state government communities

• Summit will focus on programs and opportunities to lower risk and drive economic growth