There is a program worth thousands of dollars available to help local businesses find flaws in the technology that compromises their cybersecurity, yet few know about it.
The program is offered through Georgia AIM (Artificial Intelligence in Manufacturing) and the team at the Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center (GCITC). There is no charge for the site assistance visits.
“It’s valued at over $50,000, and it’s first-come, first-served,” John McLain, Georgia AIM’s project lead at GCITC, explained for ABD. “We have a limited number, but for manufacturers and their supply chain in the state, they can sign up for a no-cost cybersecurity site assistant visit.”
The Augusta Economic Development Authority (AEDA) is helping local businesses learn about the program.
“It’s a joint venture with Georgia Tech, where basically they are doing an analysis of the system to make sure there are no penetration points that someone could invade their system,” Cal Wray, AEDA President, explained for ABD. “They do all the analysis for free because of this grant.
Wray said Georgia AIM asked AEDA for assistance to spread the word about the program through the authority’s business contacts.
They started small, asking Lane Keen, President of Keen Signs, if he would be willing to have his systems scanned.
“They were trying to get into manufacturers, and a lot of these corporates were hard to get into. So, we started with the test case of Lane Keen, a small, locally owned firm, just to try to show, here’s what we can do,” said Wray. “And they found a 10-year-old printer that, I think, was Bluetooth enabled that wasn’t being protected. So, it’s little ways that hackers could get into the system and cause chaos.”
Wray believes the internet technology (IT) departments at large companies and corporations are gun-shy about giving outsiders, even from GCITC, access to their systems. Small to medium-sized businesses have been more receptive.
“The small, family-owned companies that don’t have the dollars or haven’t realized that there’s a vulnerability there,” he said. “But it’s free, so even the big boys, if nothing else, let somebody test your system for you to see if you’ve got a problem.”
Once the test case with Keen Signs was complete and successful,
Wray provided Georgia Aim with a list of companies to approach, including Macuch Steel Products, Inc., Aurubis Richmond, LLC, and Starbucks. Wray also provided introductions by way of emails connecting companies to Georgia AIM.
“I think a lot of corporate IT structures don’t like someone playing around in their system. Even though it’s AU (Augusta University) or the Cyber Center, it’s still an unknown,” said Wray. “(Companies ask) ‘What chaos do they cause if we let them in our system?’ But the bigger question is, what chaos does someone cause that hasn’t been invited into your system?”
Businesses interested in learning more or requesting a site assistance visit, should contact McLain directly.
“All they have to do is reach out to the Georgia Cyber Center (gacybernews@augusta.edu), and they’ll link them up with me,” said McLain. “Then we go through a screening process to find out their need, and we work with them on their need. We offer over 20 different services in our service menu for cybersecurity, and we have been able to help dozens of companies in the state so far.”
Wray said his office is also available to facilitate an introduction.
