Tag Archive for: Eric

Executive interview: DNS designer Eric Holtzman discusses net security


The domain name system (DNS), which enables any computer on the internet to be identified in a human-readable form, is often regarded as the modern equivalent to the classic phone book. It’s organised as a tree, with the root server and branches – known as top-level nameservers, such as .org, .com and .edu – followed by what are known as authoritative nameservers.

Eric Holtzman, who previously worked as chief scientist at IBM, is the designer of the global DNS registration system used by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), and now works as chief strategist at decentralised cyber security network Naoris Protocol.

The success of the DNS system has resulted in the explosion of servers on the internet, and has made it possible for anyone to have a website, which can be accessed if the URL is known or can be found through a web search. This is both powerful and a massive security risk. “The DNS system has fundamentally no security whatsoever, even today,” he says. “If you had even the remotest idea of what you were doing, you could sit in a hotel room on your laptop and take entire countries off the internet.”

There have been initiatives to harden DNS, but there is a lack of motivation to resolve the security issue. Holtzman says that a quarter of a century ago, the people behind the internet agreed on an improved DNS – DNSSec – to carry cryptographic identification information at each node on the DNS tree.

In his experience, company executives simply do not want to spend the extra money needed to fix internet security. “Why would you spend half a billion dollars to improve your security? That’s actually an issue for the regulators,” says Holtzman.

In some places, like the US, he says there is a lack of privacy and understanding of what security means. The fines imposed on companies for data losses are so insignificant that there is little incentive to improve security. For instance, pointing to Equifax, Holtzman says that one in every three Americans were affected by its data breach, yet it received a minimal fine, so the downside of a data breach is trivial.

According to Holtzman, another fundamental problem with the…

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Global Cybersecurity Expert Eric Botts Tells Attendees “We Are at War”


HOUSTON, TX — On Dec. 7, 2021, the audience at a World Affairs Council of Greater Houston event was listening intently to what Global Cybersecurity expert Eric Botts had to say at his latest talk, “The Geopolitics of Cybersecurity.” The cautionary bottom line from the director of the Global Cybersecurity Program at the University of St. Thomas was “We are at war.” However, since the heavily consequential conflict is taking place within cyberspace, Botts pointed out that the war is invisible.

Addresses World Affairs Council of Greater Houston

Cyber Warfare’s Place in the History of Conflict

The assistant professor of UST courses in cyberwarfare, cyberethics, enterprise cybersecurity and digital governance outlined a brief history of the evolution of human conflict. First, he journeyed from the two-dimensional plane (land and sea) to the three-dimensional (air and space) to the fifth domain, cyberspace. Then, Botts set the stage for the conflict, explaining that there are three tier-one powers—the U.S., China and Russia. Tier-two powers would include Israel, Iran, North Korea, and others, such as the U.K. and American allies like Australia, Canada, Japan, France and Germany.

The Global Players and Their Tactics

“Concerning China and Russia, they have distinct targeting strategies and employ different tactics, techniques and procedures,” Botts explained. “China’s strategy follows the basic tenets of Sun Tzu’s Art of War. Their cyber operations focus on intellectual property theft and data exfiltration from governments, industry, civil society, educational institutions and private research and development all in an effort to ‘know your enemy as you know yourself.’

Russia’s efforts focus on disinformation, influencing operations, internet trolling and supply chain attacks. In addition, Russia often utilizes cyber mercenaries to leverage their state-sponsored intelligence assets.”

Botts also discussed ransomware attacks and their negative impact on the global economy. He touched on the business costs caused by intellectual property theft.

Leaders Joining the Conversation

Given the growing awareness of this “war,” he shared that a robust international…

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Packers salute U.S. Army veteran Eric Bebee this week for ‘Operation Fan Mail’


The Green Bay Packers and WPS Health Solutions paid special tribute this week to U.S. Army veteran and Air National Guardsman Eric Bebee and his family in conjunction with Sunday’s game against Pittsburgh.

Operation Fan Mail, the program that recognizes military families and veterans at each Packers home game, is marking its 15th season in 2021.

Bebee, originally from Birchwood, Wis., enlisted in the U.S. Army after seeing news coverage of the 9/11 attacks 20 years ago. At the beginning of his military career, he was in the infantry, serving as a rifleman, machine gunner and Fire Team Leader. He finished his Army career as an Information Technology Specialist, helping troubleshoot computer and network issues, operating and maintaining radios and facilitating battalion communications.

During his time in the Army, he traveled all over the world. He was stationed from 2003-11 in Germany, deploying from there to Afghanistan three times. He was then stationed at Fort Hood in Texas, from where he deployed to Afghanistan once more, as well as Liberia, Africa, in 2014 as the Lead Information Technology Specialist in support of the Operation United Assistance to assist with the Ebola Outbreak Crisis.

In 2016, Bebee transitioned from active duty to the Iowa Air National Guard, and he and his family now live in Hornick, Iowa. He works full time as Cyber Security manager at the 185th Air Refueling Wing in Sioux City, Iowa, as a Department of Defense Civilian during the week, and he serves as a traditional Air Guardsman on drill weekends. During his time in the military, he has received five Army Commendation medals, three Army Achievement Medals, the Combat Infantry Badge, and an Iowa Air Guard Commendation medal.

Bebee met his wife, Patricia, while he was stationed in Germany, and their family includes their daughter Suriana, and their son, Wyatt. After Patricia became a U.S. citizen in 2018, she also enlisted into the Iowa Air National Guard to serve her country.

Operation Fan Mail, which debuted in 2007, is designed to honor families with a member who is on active duty, or a member who is a veteran. The family member can be…

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Brooklyn borough president Eric Adams wants NYC better prepared for cyber attacks


Eric Adams wants to give New York City’s cyber security defenses a reboot.

The Democratic candidate in the November mayoral election said Wednesday that the city’s efforts to grow its tech security sector are moving too slowly and must be accelerated.

Appearing at an event focused on programs at the City College of Technology in downtown Brooklyn, Adams underlined the mysterious June hacking that struck the city’s Law Department over several days.

“This is not going to be the last cyber security attack,” Adams said. “Many are happening every day.”



Eric Adams talking into a microphone: Eric Adams, Brooklyn borough president (right)


© Luiz C. Ribeiro
Eric Adams, Brooklyn borough president (right)

Eric Adams, Brooklyn borough president (right) (Luiz C. Ribeiro/)

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The Brooklyn borough president said he’s had preliminary conversations with Mayor de Blasio about the need to bolster the city’s cyber security infrastructure, adding that the mayor was doing an “amazing examination” of the issue, but that he wants to speed up a city initiative meant to create 10,000 cyber jobs by 2028.

“I believe that 2028 is just too far out,” Adams said. “We need to expedite training.”

After the June hack of the city’s Law Department, workers in the agency were not able to use the department’s computer system or access their work email. At the time, two sources told the Daily News that the department had been using outdated software.

The FBI and the city’s Cyber Command office — which was established under a 2017 executive order from de Blasio — launched an analysis of the hack.

Laura Feyer, a City Hall spokesperson, said Wednesday that she had no update on the source of the hack. The Law Department declined to comment.

Adams, comparing cyber security to health, said a devastating hack could create a COVID-like slowdown for the city.

“Let’s arm ourselves with the right security, the right team, to prepare ourselves for the cyber security onslaught that this city and country is going to experience in the years to come,” Adams said.

“Remember, technology is running our water, it’s running our electricity, it is running how we’re notified during an emergency,” he said. “Everything is connected to technology.”

Adams…

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