Students trained to fight cyberterrorism

According to a news release from Florida State University, there is a “critical national shortage” of cybersecurity professionals, despite the fact that the internet is playing an increasingly important role in our everyday lives (the SFU news release mentions banking, power grid and stock exchange operations).

Apparently, the National Science Foundation (NSF) is trying to help fix the problem. They recently awarded a $1.85 million grant to FSU’s Department of Computer Science, providing scholarships for almost 60 FSU computer science graduates as part of a “Scholarship for Service” program.

Students who receive the scholarship will be required to work for the government for a minimum period of time, forming the “front line of defense in protecting the nation’s information infrastructure from cyberterrorism.”

-Photo courtesy of Don Hankins