UMD Hosts 3rd Cybersecurity and Cybersafety Workshop for Girls

Published February 26, 2014

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On Saturday, February 22, 2014, local middle school girls gathered at the University of Maryland to participate in the Maryland Cybersecurity Center’s third Cybersecurity and Cybersafety Workshop for Girls. The event was attended by girls in grades 6-8 from across Maryland. The participants arrived eager to learn about the meaning of cybersecurity, and how internet safety and security impacts their everyday lives.

After an introduction and an ice-breaker activity, the girls were separated into smaller groups which rotated through four stations throughout the day. The girls were challenged to work together and use creativity while participating in the hands-on and interactive activities. Each station was led by enthusiastic UMD undergraduate students, all of whom are students in computer science or engineering. In addition to the two existing successful activities on creating strong passwords and internet privacy, this event included new activities on social media safety and cryptography.

"This workshop is a great way to positively expose young women to technology"

Cristin Caparotta
Workshop Coordinator

"This workshop is a great way to positively expose young women to technology", said Cristin Caparotta, coordinator of the workshop and Graduate Assistant for Education at the Maryland Cybersecurity Center. "At this event, we want to both present information about how to be safe when using technology, and also inspire girls to be interested in learning more about this field".

This program is one of many educational outreach programs offered by the Maryland Cybersecurity Center, all designed to encourage young people to pursue cybersecurity and other related fields.

Future events for middle school and high school students can be found at:
www.cyber.umd.edu/education.