Press Perspectives on Critical Infrastructure Security

May 15, 2019 2:30 PM

With increased security threats to industrial controls systems quickly demanding the attention and reporting from the nation’s top media, there is a lot to translate and comprehend to understand this highly complex and technical industry. In this session, we have assembled some of the most credible and knowledgeable media in ICS reporting for a friendly discussion on ICS reporting greatness, grief and grunts. We will pull back the curtain on some of their most recent reporting to help audiences understand the elements behind a breaking national story, research required, the missing pieces, challenges and how they might re-write the story all over again. We will then turn our attention to a sneak peak of stories in development for the next ICS news item.

Speaker Information

Panelist Information

Sean Gallagher

Ars Technica

Sean Gallagher is the IT editor and national security editor at Ars Technica. A University of Wisconsin grad, he wrote his first program in high school on a DEC PDP-10, and his first database app on a dual-floppy Apple II. Sean's first paid writing gig was producing "supplemental content" for Microprose's Gunship 2000 and F-117 Stealth Fighter 2.0 game manuals. A former naval officer, Sean served aboard the USS Iowa (BB-61) and at a river patrol boat squadron— where discovery of his computer skills landed him the assignments of network administrator and computer security officer. Aside from a few dark years as a systems integrator and a stint as Ziff Davis Enterprise's director of IT strategy, Sean has been either in the review lab or on a tech beat for most of the last two decades.

Sean Lyngaas

CyberScoop

Sean Lyngaas is Senior Reporter at CyberScoop, where he writes about the security of industrial control systems, among other topics. Sean was previously a freelance journalist in West Africa, where he covered everything from a presidential election in Ghana to military mutinies in Ivory Coast for The New York Times. Lyngaas’s reporting has also appeared in The Washington Post, The Economist, and the BBC, among other outlets. His investigation of cybersecurity issues in the nuclear sector, backed by a grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, won plaudits from industrial security experts. He was previously a reporter with Federal Computer Week and, before that, with Smart Grid Today. Sean earned a B.A. in public policy from Duke University and an M.A. in International Relations from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.

Joseph Marks

Washington Post

Joseph Marks writers for the Washington Post’s Cybersecurity 202 daily email newsletter. Prior to joing the Post he covered cybersecurity for Nextgov. He alos previously covered cybersecurity for Politico, intellectual property for Bloomberg BNA and federal litigation for Law360. He covered government technology for Nextgov during an earlier stint at the publication and began his career at Midwestern newspapers covering everything under the sun. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Wisconsin in Madison and a master’s in international affairs from Georgetown University.

Blake Sobczak

E&E News

Blake covers security for Energywire in Washington, D.C., focusing on efforts to protect the oil, gas and electricity industries from cyberattacks and other threats. He writes about how hackers have applied their tools and techniques to break into — and often break — physical systems. His reporting has taken him to China and Israel for firsthand looks at how global powers approach cyberwarfare. Blake graduated summa cum laude from Northwestern University in 2012 with a double major in journalism and Arabic. He was an intern at the Associated Press' Jerusalem bureau before joining E&E News.

Kari Walker

ZAG Communications

Kari Walker serves as Senior Vice President at ZAG Communications and Principal at RedIron PR consultancy. She is an accomplished and long-time practitioner in the enterprise technology communications space, working in global and boutique public relations firms for nearly 25 years. She has led the communications efforts for more than 150 technology companies throughout her career and holds significant experience in providing clients with a wide range of public relations programs including long and short- range strategic planning, media relations, thought leadership, analyst relations, mergers/acquisitions and crisis communications. She has substantial experience within the IT security sector and possesses many long-standing media relationships with national, trade and government media that benefit clients through rapid access and exposure. She provides client companies with a strong combination of leadership, knowledge and hands-on experience to deliver strong client service, creativity, thoughtful execution and on-point results. Kari was previously Vice President at Trevelino/Keller Communications Group and Vice President at Ogilvy Public Relations, where served a technology practice lead at both firms. She is a graduate of West Virginia University.