Florida and Idaho are vastly different states in many ways, but they share a commitment to rigorous cybersecurity standards and practices, as well as a keen interest in bolstering the cybersecurity workforce of the future. That's evident in the partnership struck between the Florida Center for Cybersecurity based at the University of South Florida in Tampa and the Idaho National Laboratory, part of the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy.
INL, based in Idaho Falls, might be one of the most important federal agencies you've never heard of, with a mission that includes research in critical areas such as nuclear energy testing, electric power grid security and development of power sources for space exploration. Thus, it — and the nation — have a lot to lose if its data security is compromised.
In a statement, Cyber Florida and INL say their collaboration "will focus on cybersecurity risk mitigation, operational technology and industrial control systems, defense industrial base sector cyber risk, workforce development and more."
The two organizations previously collaborated in 2023, when INL helped Cyber Florida evaluate the "cyber readiness" of critical infrastructure in Florida. That team-up resulted in the creation of CyberBulls-i, a cybersecurity risk-assessment tool that's available free of charge to any public or private organization.