Where do you want to be this week? Now you’ll always know with our “Where You Want to Be This Week” feature, which will tell you about infosec meetups happening in your local area as of Sunday night. If you would like your event listed in our Calendar and in this post, contact us or mention it to @grecs on Twitter.

No meetup scheduled for this week, and for those who would like to plan ahead, here is a preview of events on our calendar for next week.

• Tuesday: ISACA NCA Meetup
• Thursday: ISSA NoVA Meetup

Remember that Baltimore Node, HacDC, Reverse Space, and Unallocated Space are four local hacker spaces that also hold several standard activities each week … so check them out for more fun stuff to do.

And be sure to subscribe to our RSS feed or follow us on Twitter at @novainfosec and @grecs to be alerted about any last-minute events or to receive updates on the meetups listed above. Finally, check out our Calendar for a complete list of infosec events in and around NoVA, DC, and MD.

Since I did not put out the where you want to be this week post earlier, I decided to put out a meetup reminder so that you know there is a meetup tonight in our area and also if you would like your event listed in our Calendar and in this post, contact us or mention it to @grecs on Twitter.

Friday (02/03)

• 2600 Arlington Meetup- Normal Meetup at Champps – Pentagon Row from 7:00 to 10:00 PM (more info)

Remember that Baltimore Node, HacDC, Reverse Space, and Unallocated Space are four local hacker spaces that also hold several standard activities each week … so check them out for more fun stuff to do.

And be sure to subscribe to our RSS feed or follow us on Twitter at @novainfosec and @grecs to be alerted about any last-minute events or to receive updates on the meetups listed above. Finally, check out our Calendar for a complete list of infosec events in and around NoVA, DC, and MD.

Could the addition of a new maturity model to the Nation’s Electrical Grid System improve security and protect the grid from cyber threats? An article at InfosecIsland.com a few weeks ago discussed a recent White House initiative to add a maturity model to be used throughout the entire energy industry.

I’ve always been a bit skeptical of maturity models. Even though this approach could provide small steps for easy incremental security improvements, it could also result in people just finding ways to shortcut the system without actually strengthening anything.

Overall … nice idea for people that really want to improve security … or a shortcut for those just interested in reaching a certain level for contract, marketing, or PR purposes.

via InfosecIsland.com

As part of the Obama Administration’s efforts to enhance the security and reliability of the nation’s electrical grid, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced an initiative to further protect the electrical grid from cyber attacks.

The “Electric Sector Cybersecurity Risk Management Maturity” project, a White House initiative led by the Department of Energy in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), will leverage the insight of private industry and public sector experts to build on existing cybersecurity measures and strategies to create a more comprehensive and consistent approach to protecting the nation’s energy delivery system.

“This initiative is another important step forward in improving the security of the Nation’s energy infrastructure and ensuring that the country’s electrical systems remain secure, reliable and resilient,” said Secretary Chu.

“Establishing a comprehensive cybersecurity approach will give utility companies and grid operators another important tool to improve the grid’s ability to respond to cybersecurity risks.”

Continued here.

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Please let us know what you think. Will this new maturity model actually mean more security?  Today’s post image is from Rural Community Assistance Corporation.

Where do you want to be this week? Now you’ll always know with our “Where You Want to Be This Week” feature, which will tell you about infosec meetups happening in your local area as of Sunday night. If you would like your event listed in our Calendar and in this post, contact us or mention it to @grecs on Twitter.

A light schedule for this week, with nothing formal and all you need to do is just show up and be ready to talk shop. Anyway, here are your meetups for this week.

This Week

Wednesday (1/25)

• ISSA Baltimore Meetup - Metasploit by Joshua Smith (kernelsmith) at SPARTA from 5:00 to 7:00 PM (more info)

Thursday (1/26)

• CharmSec Meetup – Normal Meetup at Slainte Irish Pub & Restaurant from 7:00 to 10:00 PM (more info)

And for those who would like to plan ahead, here is a preview of events on our calendar for next week.

• Monday: ShmooCon Epilogue
• Friday: 2600 Arlington Meetup

Remember that Baltimore Node, HacDC, Reverse Space, and Unallocated Space are four local hacker spaces that also hold several standard activities each week … so check them out for more fun stuff to do.

And be sure to subscribe to our RSS feed or follow us on Twitter at @novainfosec and @grecs to be alerted about any last-minute events or to receive updates on the meetups listed above. Finally, check out our Calendar for a complete list of infosec events in and around NoVA, DC, and MD.

A recent article over CSO Online by Taylor Armerding debates if password use might be outdated. According to Armerding, some experts believe that passwords are becoming obsolete and alternative forms of authentication such as biometrics should be used. Others argue that passwords are a solid form of authentication as long as they are used properly.

Even though Armerding enlightens us of arguments against passwords, I tend to agree with the pro-passwords camp and think this form of authentication is a long way from obsolete.

via CSOOnline.com

Despite all those “death to passwords” chants, some say it’s still a solid form of authentication — when users aren’t being stupid about theirs.

It’s 2012. The password is dead. Long live the password.

Perhaps the division in the IT world is not quite that stark, but there is indeed division. Some think it is past time to retire passwords, for what they say is the obvious reason: They don’t protect users, since they are so easily hacked. All the talk about making passwords more secure is ignoring the elephant in the room – they simply cannot be made secure. Besides, there are other, better, authentication options, like biometrics, since nobody has your fingerprints, eyes and DNA.

But others say not so fast – that biometrics are not duplicate proof, and that passwords would still be fairly effective if users didn’t make them so easy to hack and if password authentication systems were improved.

Christopher Frenz, CTO at See-Thru and a faculty member at Mercy College, both in New York, says the problem is, “not because of passwords being obsolete, but because of the prevalence of bad passwords and bad password practices.”

He points to the 2009 SQL injection attack on the social media site RockYou that compromised 32 million user account passwords. “The only password security requirement was a password of at least five characters,” he says, “(which) resulted in people choosing passwords such as 12345, Password, rockyou, and abc123,” plus common dictionary words.

Continued here.

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Please let us know what’s your take on this topic. Can passwords be “resurrected?” Today’s post image is from Information Technology and Services.

Where do you want to be this week? Now you’ll always know with our “Where You Want to Be This Week” feature, which will tell you about infosec meetups happening in your local area as of Sunday night. If you would like your event listed in our Calendar and in this post, contact us or mention it to @grecs on Twitter.

A light schedule for this week, with nothing formal and all you need to do is just show up and be ready to talk shop. Anyway, here are your meetups for this week.

This Week

Tuesday (1/17)

• ISSA DC Meetup - “Attribution and Response” by Paul de Souza at Government Printing Office (Room A138) from 6:30 to 8:00 PM (more info)

Thursday (1/19)

• ISSA NoVA Meetup - “Privacy vs. Security: Achieving Balance In The Face Of Social Networks, Geolocation, and Cyberattacks” by Randy Sabett  at Oracle – Reston from 5:30 to 8:30 PM (more info)

Next Week

And for those who would like to plan ahead, here is a preview of events on our calendar for next week.

• Thursday: ISSA Baltimore Meetup and CharmSec Meetup

Remember that Baltimore Node, HacDC, Reverse Space, and Unallocated Space are four local hacker spaces that also hold several standard activities each week … so check them out for more fun stuff to do.

And be sure to subscribe to our RSS feed or follow us on Twitter at @novainfosec and @grecs to be alerted about any last-minute events or to receive updates on the meetups listed above. Finally, check out our Calendar for a complete list of infosec events in and around NoVA, DC, and MD.

Where do you want to be this week? Now you’ll always know with our “Where You Want to Be This Week” feature, which will tell you about infosec meetups happening in your local area as of Sunday night. If you would like your event listed in our Calendar and in this post, contact us or mention it to @grecs on Twitter.

As is common in the beginning of January it’s starting pretty slow. Next week at least there looks to be a little more activity. Anyway, here are your meetups for this week as well as a preview for next week.

This Week

Monday (1/9)

• NoVA Hackers Association Meetup - No formal presentation but instead will be several approximately 20 minute talks by a few of the attendees at ICF International from 5:30 to 8:30 PM (more info)

Next Week

And for those who would like to plan ahead, here is a preview of events on our calendar for next week.

• Tuesday: ISSA DC Meetup
• Thursday: ISSA NoVA Meetup

Remember that Baltimore Node, HacDC, Reverse Space, and Unallocated Space are four local hacker spaces that also hold several standard activities each week … so check them out for more fun stuff to do.

And be sure to subscribe to our RSS feed or follow us on Twitter at @novainfosec and @grecs to be alerted about any last-minute events or to receive updates on the meetups listed above. Finally, check out our Calendar for a complete list of infosec events in and around NoVA, DC, and MD.

Where do you want to be this week? Now you’ll always know with our “Where You Want to Be This Week” feature, which will tell you about infosec meetups happening in your local area as of Sunday night. If you would like your event listed in our Calendar and in this post, contact us or mention it to @grecs on Twitter.

A slow week to start the year with nothing formal and all you have to do is show up and be ready to talk shop.

This Week

Thursday (01/05)

• OWASP NoVA Meetup- Normal meetup at Oakton Public Library from 6:00 to 9:00 PM (more info)

Friday (01/06)

• 2600 Arlington Meetup- Normal meetup atChampps – Pentagon Row from 7:00 to 10:00 PM (more info)

Next Week

And for those who would like to plan ahead, here is a preview of events on our calendar for next week.

• Monday: NoVA Hackers Association Meetup

Remember that Baltimore Node, HacDC, Reverse Space, and Unallocated Space are four local hacker spaces that also hold several standard activities each week … so check them out for more fun stuff to do.

And be sure to subscribe to our RSS feed or follow us on Twitter at @novainfosec and @grecs to be alerted about any last-minute events or to receive updates on the meetups listed above. Finally, check out our Calendar for a complete list of infosec events in and around NoVA, DC, and MD.

Here’s another quick post on an article I’ve been meaning to mention for the last month or so. It falls under the “2012 prediction” category so referencing it now still seems relevant. Plus it follows nicely with yesterday’s post on the hottest security jobs but is more focused on salary. I’ve added some commentary to the main points I pulled out just for the fun of it.

In summary …

• Infosec salaries should rise by an average by 4.5%. [grecs: Yet those CEOs are getting 20%+ pay increases. Also my insurance premiums are still increasing by that same 20% so I guess I'll be 15.5% in the hole for 2012. But on the other hand ... at least we should be getting raises.]
• There are lots of positions but not enough skilled people. [grecs: Good for us I guess ... but it may also pollute our profession with people that don't really "care" as much about infosec and are just doing it for the money.]
• Data security analysts is THE hot security job for the next year. [grecs: Nice general title to mention there... It could mean almost anything.]
• CISSP and Security+ certificates continue to be the most in demand. [grecs: When with the OSCP get some respect?]
• Application, mobile, cloud and virtual security will also be big. [grecs: Yeah, guess that makes sense ... since it's been the same way for the past several years ... well maybe except for mobile.]

via InformationWeek.com

Good news for information security professionals: Expect salaries to increase by an average of 4.5% in 2012. Pay for chief security officers, meanwhile, is expected to increase by 3.9%.

Those predictions come by way of staffing agency Robert Half Technology, which last week released its 2012 Salary Guide, which details technology industry salary and hiring trends.

The report predicts that for 2012, many security jobs will be in high demand, especially for midlevel and senior roles. “Data security and protection, especially in industries such as banking and healthcare, will continue to be an in-demand area within technology,” according to the report. “In fact, 24% of CIOs polled by our firm cited security as their top professional concern.”

Continued here.

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Today’s featured image is from HDIStLouis.com.

Where do you want to be this week? Now you’ll always know with our “Where You Want to Be This Week” feature, which will tell you about infosec meetups happening in your local area as of Sunday night. If you would like your event listed in our Calendar and in this post, contact us or mention it to @grecs on Twitter.

Well as expected it’s a pretty slow week with Christmas being over and New Year’s around the corner. We only have one event listed below but hopefully CapSecDC will pop up with something on Wednesday. Anyway, here are your meetups for this week as well as a preview for next week.

[Update 12/27 12:30 PM: Looks like CapSecDC is on as well.]

This Week

Wednesday (12/28)

• CapSecDC Meetup – Normal meetup at Fado Irish Pub & Restaurant from 6:00 to 9:00 PM (more info)

Thursday (12/29)

• CharmSec Meetup – Normal meetup at Slainte Irish Pub & Restaurant from 7:00 to 10:00 PM (more info)

Next Week

And for those who would like to plan ahead, here is a preview of events on our calendar for next week.

• Thursday: OWASP NoVA Meetup
• Friday: 2600 Arlington Meetup

Remember that Baltimore Node, HacDC, Reverse Space, and Unallocated Space are four local hacker spaces that also hold several standard activities each week … so check them out for more fun stuff to do.

And be sure to subscribe to our RSS feed or follow us on Twitter at @novainfosec and @grecs to be alerted about any last-minute events or to receive updates on the meetups listed above. Finally, check out our Calendar for a complete list of infosec events in and around NoVA, DC, and MD.