Arkansas Cyber Defense Center receives major boost from statewide partnerships
ACDC provides a frontline layer of cyber defense for Arkansas’ small businesses
Forge Institute introduced the Arkansas Cyber Defense Center (ACDC) as a real-time operational call center that supports Arkansas Small Businesses and entrepreneurs to boost their cyber defense readiness through awareness, assessments, training and incident support. A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between Forge Institute, represented by Lee Watson, Founder and CEO, the Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center (ASBTDC), represented by State Director Laura Fine and the Arkansas Municipal League, represented by Executive Director Mark Hayes.
“Our mission to develop Arkansas as the cyber defense state has led us to establish programs that promote community involvement, private and public sector cooperation, and Federal, State and Local government collaboration,” said Lee Watson, Founder and CEO of Forge Institute
The ribbon cutting and MOU signing establishes the ACDC as a powerful resource for small businesses looking to secure themselves and their clients from bad actors on the Web. The ACDC is staffed by cyber analysts – the majority of which are U.S. Military veterans – from Forge Institute and is administered by Scott Anderson, Executive Director for Forge Institute and former commander of a cyber squadron in the U.S. Air Force.
“Among small businesses that experience a cyber attack, about 60% never recover,” said Anderson. “That risk is too great to ignore for Arkansans. ACDC is focused on helping small businesses protect themselves and their customers.”
Among the services provided by ACDC is a Cyber Risk Assessment, a 10-minute assessment conducted online at Forge Institute’s website at www.forge.institute/acdc. The ACDC services are free thanks to the SBA grant:Cybersecurity for Small Business Pilot Program.
“The Cyber Risk Assessment is an excellent start for any small business or organization to audit their own cyber security measures,” explained Anderson. “Most people don’t realize that small businesses are a primary target for bad actors on the Web. Rather than allowing that knowledge to keep you up at night, we recommend you take this Cyber Risk Assessment as your first step to a stronger defense.”
The ceremony was attended by a number of key government officials and private sector leaders, including Laura Fine, State Director, Arkansas SBTDC; Devin Shirley, CISO, Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield; Mark Hayes, Executive Director, Municipal League; Col. (Ret.) Rob Ator, Director of Military Affairs, Arkansas Economic Development Commision; Claudia Wilson, Outreach and Marketing Specialist, SBA.
Laura Fine underscored the importance of the ACDC’s role in the small business community. “The only way our small businesses are going to be competitive and continue to succeed is if they understand cybersecurity and understand the steps they need to take to be able to counter (cyberattack) threats.”
“It’s been a great privilege to work with this team,” said Mark Hayes before officially signing the MOU. “I think we have a great opportunity for our state, and to be only one of three states in the country doing this kind of work is amazing.”
If you feel you’re a victim of a cyber attack, or even if you feel like you might be vulnerable to an attack, businesses and institutions are encouraged to call 501-239-9599. The service is free for Arkansas small businesses through August of this year.
Key Facts
The Arkansas Cyber Defense Center (ACDC) officially introduced its operations center to the Arkansas’ small business community during an official ribbon cutting ceremony on Thursday
ACDC is an operational call center that supports Arkansas Small Businesses and entrepreneurs to boost their cyber defense readiness through awareness, assessments, training and incident support.
ACDC services are currently FREE to small businesses in Arkansas
ACDC is currently offering a free Cyber Risk Assessment
