IT Discussion Questions for 2 Parts

Respond to 2 questions per Part and must be 200 words minimum per a response to a question. So total you will have 2 responses for Part 5 questions and 2 responses to Part 6 questions.

Part 1

1. Legislative Processes: What about Cybersecurity?

a. Periodically, congress attempts to formulate and pass additional Cyber Security legislation. In 2015, the focus was on improving information sharing between government agencies and private entities to combat cyber threats.

Please review this legislative proposal https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-bill/754 and provide your assessment of the bill's pros/cons and the impact it will have on privacy and the Internet. Keep in mind there are other cybersecurity related bills that have been or will be proposed in the near future. Do some research and compare and contrast the intent of other pieces of cyber security legislation that are relevant to the discussion.

Please remember to cite your sources.

2. Integration Issues

a. What integration issues do merging companies face? What techniques can a security professional use to ease cultural differences? How would the security professional bring together both IT teams so they feel comfortable? One of the most "invisible" barriers to success is the feeling of other IT professionals or teams "loss of control". How can you ease fears and build a positive team?

3. Cultural Differences

a. Cultural differences when companies merge can last for years. There have been instances when the acquired company had more advanced technology then the other company, and they were forced to step back in time. That is a very frustrating experience. How would you tackle this issue?

Part 6

1. Energy Sector and Cybersecurity

a. Please read Energy Cybersecurity Issue.docx. As you can see this article was published in early 2012 and it deals with issues associated with the Energy Sector. The article claims that since 2009 the Energy Sector has not improved its Cybersecurity Programs with money that was given to it by the Federal Government.

Do some research on your own and try and find related articles or issues concerning security concerns regarding the Energy Sector. Based on your research what are some of the continuing concerns and what is the impact if a cyber attack is launched against the Energy Sector. Do you think that type of attack would have a significant impact or is our infrastructure robust enough to withstand an attack? What recommendations would you make if you were a Cyber Analyst giving your opinion to Congress?

Remember to cite your sources!

2. Conflict Management Techniques

a. Conflict management techniques come in handy when you are working in organizations. Most people do not have a good skill set in this area. Read the article, Conflict Management Techniques, available here, http://www.personalityexplorer.com/home/FREEResources/ConflictManagementTechniques.aspx. You might recognize a technique you already use. Select one technique and provide an example of how you think it may be used during a merger, or formation of a team. Provide details.

3. Managing a Remote Workforce

a. Most work forces are moving to more remote access. How do you manage people remotely? How do you make sure that they are included in the team. Our example has only two countries involved, what if there are many? How do you provide them access into the network securely? Especially if they are coming in from other countries that are known for infiltrating networks??

4. Legal Systems

a. There are a lot of security reasons for decommissioning legacy systems at all times, not just at a merger. Discuss two security issues and then provide the business reason for decommissioning that we could present to the business line. In a for-profit company, you have to save the security card for when it is really important. You need to address risk. You can't afford to mitigate all risk, sometimes you have to accept it or transfer it. How will this scenario affect your customer base? How will you be able to continue business? Be creative with your answers.