Join leaders in both agriculture and cybersecurity at the intersection of these two industries to explore emerging opportunities presented by the rise of agtech.

F3 Tech Accelerator and Cybersecurity Association of Maryland, along with lead sponsor the Maryland Department of Commerce, are pleased to announce they are hosting a virtual two-day Cyber in Ag Symposium highlighting the cybersecurity threat environment among the agricultural and food industry sectors. Topics covered by cybersecurity, agricultural, governmental and academic subject matter experts during keynote and panel discussions on December 9 and 10 will include: the current cyber threat environment, defending farmer’s proprietary ownership of data, protecting the food supply and supply chain, protecting and securing open-source data, securing IoT and endpoints, the protection of SCADA systems in austere environments, “hacktivists,” and cyber workforce requirements to protect OT and IT within this industry.

“Raising the awareness and understanding of this aspect in agriculture, aquaculture, and the food supply chain is critical to the continued expansion of data, automation, and artificial intelligence in the industry,” advised Mike Thielke, executive director of the F3 Tech Accelerator and its parent organization, Eastern Shore Entrepreneurship Center.

According to a 2017 Private Industry Notification (PIN) targeted to the agricultural industry, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Cyber Division warned the food and agriculture sector that it is increasingly becoming vulnerable to cybersecurity attacks. The report warns farmers to be aware of and understand the cyber risks associated with using modern Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and develop adequate cybersecurity and breach response strategies.

“Cybersecurity is a rapidly evolving enterprise threat sparing no segment of the industry. While all market participants are exposed to these threats, from critical infrastructure and large agricultural conglomerates, small to mid-sized enterprises, all are vulnerable. We are hoping to highlight the threat environment, provide actionable guidance and set the stage for an ongoing dialogue amongst industry and solution providers that will turn into a series of symposiums over the next twelve months,” said Christina Majernik, board member of Cybersecurity Association of Maryland, Inc. and senior vice president of Domain5.

Entrepreneurs, innovators, startups within agriculture, aquaculture, and cybersecurity sectors, government agencies, industry associations, incubators and accelerator programs will only be a few of the attendees at the Cybersecurity Ag Symposium. The first day of the symposium includes plenary sessions hosting three keynote speakers. Day one of the symposium will also allow attendees to facilitate Q&As with the distinguished keynote presenters. The second day of the symposium will hold three sessions with multiple break out rooms on various topics to include interactive discussions.