Utica College's New Cyber Operations Specialization Answers Vital Defense, Corporate Needs

Advanced Online Master's Program Addresses Issues Critical to Intelligence, Military, Law Enforcement, Business

UTICA, N.Y., Sept. 16, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- It's a new battlefield.

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One of the greatest concerns for government, military, law enforcement and corporations in today's digital world is security. "One thing is clear: cyber has escalated from an issue of moderate concern to one of the most serious threats to our national security," said U.S. Army Gen. Marin E. Dempsey, Joint Chiefs of Staff.  The threat of a major system hack can pose danger in many ways, including threatening health, welfare, physical and financial security.

Utica College is one of only a handful of colleges to offer a master's program in specialized cybersecurity. The college recently added a third specialization option, cyber operations, for students in the master's program to address the needs that are critical to intelligence, military, national defense, corporate and law enforcement organizations.

As the third specialization in UC's graduate cybersecurity program, cyber operations tackles the social, legal and ethical issues of cyber operations and its key tactics, techniques and procedures. Students learn about ethical hacking, vulnerability assessment, and stealth and covert cyber operations tactics. Other specializations in the Utica College program include computer forensics and intelligence.

Joseph Giordano, UC Professor of Practice in Cybersecurity and Criminal Justice and the director of the cybersecurity program, said, "Cybersecurity is a top national priority. There is a serious need for new academic programs that address cyber operations to deter, detect, protect against and mitigate cyber attacks. The cyber threat is continually evolving and new ways of thinking about defense are needed. As a result, Utica College has forged a new academic specialization in cyber operations."

The specialized cybersecurity program is offered online with residencies at Utica College, home to an internationally respected suite of economic crime and justice studies programs, where economic crime majors are taught by a remarkably accomplished professional faculty, using the industry's most current tools and techniques. Students have access to advanced technologies available in the college's state-of-the-art Economic Crime, Justice Studies and Cybersecurity facility.

Utica College, which has been a pioneer in economic crime and cyber programs, is home to the Economic Crime Institute, the Northeast Cyber Forensic Center, and the Center for Identity Management and Information Protection (CIMIP), which has garnered national attention for its landmark study of perpetrators of ID theft.

For more information about the Master of Science in Cybersecurity and its specializations, visit http://programs.online.utica.edu/programs/masters-cybersecurity.asp

About Utica College – Utica College, founded in 1946, is a comprehensive private institution offering bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees. The College, located in upstate central New York, approximately 90 miles west of Albany and 50 miles east of Syracuse, currently enrolls over 4,000 students in 38 undergraduate majors, 29 minors, 20 graduate programs and a number of pre-professional and special programs.

Contact: Christine Leogrande, Director of Media Relations, (315) 223-2519 [email protected]

SOURCE Utica College