An increasing amount of business-critical information is stored on computers and as technology is deployed within companies, their level of vulnerability increases. This information is at the mercy of hackers, poor information security measures, complicated internal processes and a host of other risks.
While solutions to security woes are applied successfully every day, each year brings new information security challenges and requires that specialists in the field remain at least two steps ahead of those who wish to cause a company harm.
It is also important that industry and academic professionals in the information security realm come together to share knowledge and experience, learning from international best practice, case studies, current procedures and research.
"The annual Information Security South Africa (ISSA) conference is a good opportunity to do this," says RAU`s Professor Les Labuschagne, co-organiser of the annual event.
"This is the conference`s third year and we have seen it grow significantly in terms of attendance and the number and quality of local and international speakers over the years. Topics always reflect the current issues faced by industry, as well as the practical and theoretical approaches to dealing with these issues."
The event is an excellent example of academia and industry coming together to address areas of common concern. The conference is a collaborative effort between Pretoria University`s Department of Computer Science and the RAU Standard Bank Academy for Information Technology. Telkom and KPMG, recognising the value and pertinence of such a conference, have thrown their weight behind it as this year`s main sponsors.
The ISSA conference distinguishes itself from other security conferences through its vendor-independence and its origins, which lie in real interest among practitioners in the field.
A call for papers has been issued inviting local and international speakers to submit their topics for review. The keynote speaker is Prof Dr Stephanie Teufel, Director of the International Institute of Management in Telecommunications in Sweden. Her presentation will revolve around Information Security Measurement.
ISSA2003, The Future Secured, will be held at the Sandton Convention Centre in Gauteng from 9 to 11 July 2003.
More information can be obtained by visiting the conference Web site at www.infosecsa.co.za.
Share
Editorial contacts