Information Security
Cybersecurity Awareness Month
2021 State of Texas Office of the Governor Cybersecurity Awareness Month Proclamation
Check out DIR's Twitter and LinkedIn profiles for cyber tips and statistics throughout the month
Cybersecurity Awareness Month Activities:
- Oct 4th TAMCC Cybersecurity webinar: Social Engineering and Phishing Attacks
- Oct 5th WiCys: Let’s Crack Passwords
- Oct 6th HHSC Cyber Agility: Cyber Habits and Muscle Memory
- Oct 12th DIR & Texas PTA Talk Connect Cybersecurity Program, Resources, Contests & More
- Oct 12th WiCys: Cloud Security Architecture
- Oct 13th WiCys: Imposter Syndrome, Perspectives from Black Women in Tech
- Oct 19th 9am ISAO presentation: Creating a Security program and end user training
- Oct 20th HHSC The Cyber Maze: Hack the Hacker
- Oct 26th HHSC Cyber Crawl: The Changing Cyber Landscape
- Oct 27th 11am DIR & Gartner security webinar: The First Rule of Security Awareness...Talk About Security Awareness!
- Oct 29th HHSC Cyber Fire Fight: Internet of Things (IoTs)
Conferences & Events
- Oct 7th - 14th Annual Cyber Security Virtual Conference
- Oct 20th - 5th Annual Houston Cyber Summit
- Oct 25-28th - Texas Cyber Summit
- CISA 4th Annual Cybersecurity Summit (Oct 6, 13, 20, 27th)
Current Youth Competitions:
High School Student Public Service Announcement Competition
The 4th Annual High School Cybersecurity Awareness Public Service Announcement (PSA) Competition sponsored by the Texas Department of Information Resources Office of the Chief Information Security Officer opens September 14th, 2021. All Texas HS students grades 9-12th are welcome to participate in creating PSA videos. Submission DEADLINE EXTENDED to Friday, October 29th at 11:59pm CST. See the documents below for additional competition details. #2021TXPSA
- PSA Video Submission Form
- PSA Flyer
- Cybersecurity PSA Competition Information and Guidance
- Guidance on Creating a PSA
2020 Winners
Thank you to all the teams who participated in OCISO's 3rd annual competition. We commend you all for the hard work and creativity despite the challenges faced this year!
Cyber Threat Defender Card Design Contest
Feeling creative? Join our first ever Cyber Threat Defender (CTD) card design contest for Cybersecurity Month! Show off your knowledge of cybersecurity by creating your own CTD card - the winning card will be added to a future booster pack! Submit your entry between 10/1/2021 and 10/25/2021. Full details.
Texas A&M University Cybersecurity Games
Each year, the Texas A&M Division of Information Technology creates a campus-wide IT security game for National Cyber Security Awareness Month. Each game is designed to be fun and engaging, while educating students, faculty and staff about how to be safe online.
CSSIA Interactives
The interactives were developed under the leadership of Mike Qaissaunee (about) at the Brookdale Cyber Center with funding from an NSF Grant (DUE 1601612). If you have kids or students interested learning or developing their skills in cybersecurity and networking, give these a try!
MS-ISAC Kids Stay Safe Online Poster Contest
Each year K-12 students from across the country submit pieces of artwork that cover topics such as being safe online, good online security practices, cyber bullying, and how to be a good digital citizen. Public, private, and home schooled students in grades K-12 are all invited to participate! The contest will run from September 25, 2021 through January 22, 2022. The winners of the contest will be recognized nationally in acknowledgment of National October Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM).
For more information regarding the contest and other ways to participate in NCSAM (such as the Best of the Web Contest), please visit the MS-ISAC Toolkit page listed below. The poster contest entry form is available under Bring Security Home, which includes FAQs to help guide your efforts and provide inspiration. Send questions and submissions to contest@msisac.org. All submissions must be sent as a scanned image.
CyberStart America
CyberStart America previously known as Girls Go Cyber Start is for all students in grades (9th-12th). They will discover skills or advance cybersecurity talent by playing over 200 online challenges. Access to the games opens October 27th, so sign up now for instant access on launch day!
MS-ISAC Cybersecurity Awareness Materials
MS-ISAC no longer prints toolkit materials, calendars or posters but you are welcome to print and share items below. https://www.cisecurity.org/ms-isac/ms-isac-toolkit/
- 2020 MS-ISAC Cybersecurity Awareness Posters
- 2021 MS-ISAC Calendar
- Tips and advice for staying safe online
Additional General Security Resources
Find additional cybersecurity information and tools from the following resources, all leaders in creating the standards for cybersecurity.
- Texas.gov Cyber Safety Corner
- US CERT CISA Tips for Home and Business
- US CERT CISA Tips for Home Network
- NSA Best Practices for Securing Your Home Network
- TEA Best Practices for Video Learning