During the past year, there have been reports of increasing cyber threats to research databases and manufacturing operations. These follow an increasing frequency of ransomware threats to hospital systems and known vulnerabilities to operating systems for research and industrial equipment used in critical life sciences discovery and manufacturing. These threats apply across all areas of the bio-economy, including production of therapeutics, vaccines, chemicals, energy, and agriculture.
Hosted by Colorado State University, the purpose of this symposium is to bring together experts from multiple sectors to discuss the current vulnerabilities and opportunities for collaborative solutions in the emerging field of cyberbiosecurity.
"CSU is uniquely positioned to explore the vulnerabilities of life sciences and the bio-economy to increasing cybersecurity threats and to develop solutions. We have unique assets in biomanufacturing and large databases of discovery research in infectious disease, climate, and agriculture. Addressing these challenges will require multidisciplinary research collaboration and new educational efforts."
- Alan Rudolph, Vice President for Research, Colorado State University
