Ohio Cyber Range is unveiled in ceremony at UC

Photo By Staff Sgt. Michael Carden | Officials with the Ohio Adjutant General’s Department, the Ohio Department of Higher Education and the University of Cincinnati gathered on May 29, 2018, for a virtual ribbon cutting to unveil the Ohio Cyber Range at UC. The Ohio Cyber Range, one of many initiatives developed by the Ohio Cyber Collaboration Committee (OC3), is a virtual training ground accessible for competitions, training and testing environment for schools, governments and businesses. (Ohio National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Michael Carden)  

CINCINNATI, OH, UNITED STATES

05.29.2018

Story by Stephanie Beougher 

Ohio National Guard Public Affairs

The audience counted down along with the numbers on the screen at the front of the room: “3-2-1.” The numbers were replaced by an animated pair of scissors that cut a red ribbon. Officials with the Ohio Adjutant General’s Department, the Ohio Department of Higher Education and the University of Cincinnati gathered on May 29 for the virtual ribbon cutting to unveil the Ohio Cyber Range at the University of Cincinnati — a virtual cybersecurity training ground.

“When you use a gun, you go to a gun range and you take this very lethal weapon and you learn how to protect yourself in a very safe environment. The same thing is true with a cyber range. You take some very lethal weapons that are out there in the cybersecurity world and you bring them into a very safe environment and you learn how to protect yourself,” said Stephen Smith, director of the Ohio Cyber Range at UC.

The Ohio Department of Higher Education, in collaboration with the Ohio Adjutant General’s Department, awarded the University of Cincinnati $1.9 million to establish a demonstration site for the Ohio Cyber Range by June 2019.

“The purpose of the Ohio Cyber Range is about bringing good jobs to the state of Ohio and training the future workforce,” according to Maj. Gen. Mark E. Bartman, Ohio adjutant general. “It will enable (the ability to) to be (a) training and testing environment for anybody in the state of Ohio who’s connected to education, the military or private organizations that want to be a part of it.”

Shawn Turskey, executive director of U.S. Cyber Command and an Ohio native, stressed the need for partnerships.

“The increase in cyberattacks by our adversaries is getting more and more concerning. The Ohio Cyber Range presents an opportunity to not only leverage people, capabilities and partnerships across the cyber enterprise but also develop the next generation of cyber talent to meet the current and future demands of this dynamic environment,” Turskey said.

Future phases of the Ohio Cyber Range will build on the University of Cincinnati’s successes to expand to other sites in the state to create a statewide network.

The Ohio Cyber Range is an initiative developed by the Ohio Cyber Collaboration Committee (OC3), a collaborative effort lead by the Adjutant General’s Department of more than 200 people who represent public, private, military and educational organizations.

OC3 has already provided hands-on learning for Ohio students at cyber capture the flag competitions at high schools and universities around the state. The demonstration range at UC will help expand the capabilities to train and engage more students.

• Date Taken: 05.29.2018
• Date Posted: 06.06.2018 16:28
• Story ID: 279854
• Location: CINCINNATI, OH, US