The webinar was designed to provide a briefing to Governors’ staff, state and local agencies on cybersecurity threats associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

As state agencies, school districts, health care facilities, and businesses transition to remote work, distance learning, and telehealth solutions, the cyber threat landscape continues to rapidly evolve. Speakers highlighted common cybersecurity threats and corresponding best practices to thwart them. Attendees learned how to leverage the cyber lessons learned at the federal, state, and local levels to identify and disrupt malicious campaigns seeking to exploit citizens and critical infrastructure in the midst of our national response to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Speakers included:

• Ryan Gillis – Vice President, Cybersecurity Strategy & Global Policy, Palo Alto Networks
• Shawn Riley – Chief Information Officer, State of North Dakota Information Technology Department
• Bryan Ware – Assistant Director for Cybersecurity, Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency, Department of Homeland Security

The Latest on the Western Governors’ COVID-19 Response

• COVID-19 in the West: A state-by-state breakdown of the Governors’ work
• Executive Director’s Notebook: A Team Effort
• Best of the West Special Edition: Searching for a vaccine in Montana; improvements in testing and contact tracing; challenges faced by rural hospitals

Watch the Latest Reimagining the Rural West Webinars

• Reimagining Disability Employment Policy in the Rural West
• Community Anchor Institution Connectivity
• COVID-19 Economic Impacts and Mitigation in Rural Communities

Get the latest news about the West and its governors by following the Western Governors' Association on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

Check out our podcast, Out West, on Podbean, Spotify and Apple Podcasts.