We are pleased to welcome a powerhouse speaker, former FBI Special Agent John Iannarelli, on the subject of Cybersecurity.

Here is a quick summary of the key information in this announcement:   

Date: Tuesday, March 5, via Zoom

Time: 8:30-10:00 AM Pacific time

CPE Credit: 1.0 hours

Speaker: Mr. John Iannarelli, a Former FBI Special Agent, lawyer, cyber security expert and international speaker

Topic: Cybersecurity for Financial Executives

Registering yourself:

Members: http://www.thefeng.org. Log in with your password, go to SD chapter, find info for this meeting, click by the "RSVP" tab.

Guests:  https://www.thefeng.org/chapters/california/san-diego/33      

As this virtual meeting will be held via Zoom, please register yourself for the meeting as shown above, before noon Pacific time today, March 4th. When you register, you will be sent a quick acknowledgment message and then you will receive a link, later today, for entering the Zoom meeting tomorrow morning.

For more detail on registering, and on the meeting itself and our speaker, see below.

The meeting is free for all FENG members and their guests. For those desiring CPE credit, 1.0 hours CPE credit will be given out, with the procedure for this to be reviewed in the meeting.

The Details: Discussion Topic and Speaker 

Cybercrime.  Data breach.  Virus.  Malware.  Hacking.  Cyberspoofing.  Data exfiltration.  Botnet.  Identity theft.  Cyber trespassing.  Ransomware.  Encryption.  Double Extortion Attacks.  IP Piracy.  Cyberstalking.  Phishing.  Social Engineering.  Dark Web.  Denial-of-Service.  Data theft.  Power Grid.  Societal Infrastructure Risk.  Corporate Liability.  Corporate Shutdown....

What are all those words?  Some of them have been around for 20-30 years, some are newer.  They're just some of the new vocabulary of the world of cybercrime, the cyber risks that surround us in our working lives and in our private lives.  It's the new reality of the 21st Century.  It's not going away anytime soon.

As the senior financial officers in companies, we effectively become the chief risk officers.  We have to know the risks, we have to know how to protect our companies against those risks, and we have to know the costs of failing to protect against those risks.

Cyberattacks are unrelenting.  Our governments at all levels are endeavoring to put in place legal frameworks to ensure that companies take the actions necessary to protect themselves against cyberattacks, and to ensure that companies will assume responsibility when cyberattacks occur.  

But for companies and individuals, the best defense is an understanding of the risks, an understanding of the tools available both to you and to the bad guys, and thorough planning and action to protect yourselves and your companies against the current and continually evolving and developing threats.

Cybercrime -- things like identity theft, massive ransomware attacks, theft of a company's intellectual property -- are significant threats to companies due to their potential to cause financial losses, reputational damage and operational disruptions. 

Some examples:

• Ransomware attacks encrypt a company's critical data, rendering it inaccessible until a ransom is paid. This can lead to significant operational disruptions, downtime, and loss of productivity. Restoring systems and data after an attack can be time-consuming and cost millions of dollars.

• Phishing attacks can be used to deliver malware that can disrupt operations, compromise sensitive information, or allow unauthorized access to company networks.

• Identity Theft, when personal information is stolen, typically requires a company to to notify thousands of affected individuals, report to regulators, work with law enforcement authorities. The legal and regulatory fallout can result in fines, lawsuits, and increased scrutiny.

• Ransomware attacks, in addition to encrypting data, ransomware attacks can enable the cybercriminals to take the crime to a secondary or tertiary level, exfiltrating sensitive information beyond the company. If the stolen data includes customer or proprietary information, the company may face legal consequences, further reputational damage -- and significantly more cost.

• Cybercrime can result in temporarily shutting a company down, causing secondary issues of filing insurance claims and possibly learning that insurance may not cover significant amounts of those claims, jeopardizing the health of patients if the targeted company is a healthcare provider, and many other effects beyond the initial and most obvious impacts of the attack.

In this presentation, John will be giving us insights into these issues and more.  We can expect to leave this talk with a much greater understanding of:

• The various types of phishing scams that are used to break into our data and steal our info.

• The latest ransomware threats that can impact us, and WILL impact some of us.

• Additional protective moves to make for both yourself and your company when traveling.

• Our use of the "Internet of Things" and what risks that gives us.

• Artificial intelligence -- AI -- how it can be used by cybercriminals, but also it can be used by you to help protect against cybercrime. 

By the end of John's talk, you’ll be far more conversant with security risk, able to speak for more effectively with your General Counsels, Information Security Officers, CIOs, CTOs, privacy officers, compliance officers and information security personnel.  You may be breathless from all the information... but you'll be knowledgeable!

NOTE that if you wish to bring your head of IT or your general counsel as your guest, as IT and legal folks are often on the front lines of cybercrime defense, feel free to do so.

About our speaker 

John Iannarelli is a longtime expert on cybersecurity, but his expertise goes well beyond cybersecurity, into many other aspects of security. John served as an FBI Special Agent for 20 years, during which he was a SWAT team member and participated in the investigations of the Oklahoma City bombing, the 9/11 attack, the shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, and the Sony hack. Among his many FBI assignments, John served as the FBI’s National Spokesperson, on the Cyber Division Executive staff, and was an Assistant Special Agent in Charge overseeing all Criminal, Cyber and Counterintelligence investigations. He was recognized with the FBI’s Director Award for Distinguished Service.

A former San Diego Police Officer and attorney with international studies at Oxford, England, John is admitted to the practice of law in California, Maryland, and Washington DC. In addition, he is the recipient of an Honorary Doctor of Computer Science in recognition of his contributions to the field of cyber investigations. John was also an NFL Security Representative responsible for ensuring public safety throughout the football season and the Super Bowl.

John is the author of five books, including Why Teens Fail and What to Fix, a parents’ guide to protecting their children on the Internet and other dangers, and How to Spot a Terrorist Before It’s Too Late. His 5th book, Disorderly Conduct, was released just three years ago this month, and examines the lighter side of law enforcement and the humorous moments during his FBI career.

John is a frequent on-air contributor for the national news media and has been profiled in Forbes. He provided live on-scene coverage from Las Vegas of the Mandalay Bay mass shooting attack as it occurred. An engaging and entertaining keynote speaker, John is a National Speakers Association Certified Speaking Professional® known for sharing his intriguing insights combined with his superb sense of humor. He has presented to Fortune 500 companies, domestic and international audiences, the United Nations, and the Vatican, where he has personally met on several occasions with Pope Francis.

John undergraduate degree is in Communications from Montclair State University, New Jersey, with his law degree from the University of San Diego Law School, with advances studies in International Civil and Criminal Law at the Magdalen College School at Oxford, UK.