Government and Private Sector Experts Unite to Discuss Cyber Security and Infrastructure Protection.

In a first-ever joint meeting to leverage the collective expertise of government and private sector security experts, the Government Forum of Incident Responders and Security Teams (GFIRST), the U.S. Secret Service's Electronic Crimes Task Force (USSS-ECTF) and the InfraGard National Members Alliance (InfraGard) today announced the inaugural Joint GFIRST-USSS/ECTF-InfraGard meeting on August 16, 2006 in Atlanta. Hosted by the Georgia Tech Information Security Center (GTISC), this meeting will pilot the periodic merger of the three organizations to channel government and private sector expertise to address cyber security and infrastructure protection.

"As the electronic medium comes to increasingly dominate our daily lives, partnerships and collaborative efforts like those exemplified by InfraGard, GFIRST and the Secret Service Electronic Crimes Task Force have become ever more critical to protecting our nation's critical infrastructure," said Victor Erevia, Assistant Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service, Atlanta. "I'd like to thank the Georgia Tech Information Security Center for hosting this very important meeting."

"As members of the infrastructure protection, national security and law enforcement communities, each organization recognizes the need to foster close collaboration between government and the private sector on critical issues such as cyber security and the protection of critical infrastructure and key resources," said Dr. Phyllis Schneck, chairman of the InfraGard National Members Alliance Board of Directors. "This joint meeting will serve to set the trend for cross-agency, cross-organization cooperation when it comes to matters of protecting our nation's infrastructure from cyber attacks. I am delighted to join my colleagues from GFIRST and the USSS/ECTF,our host GTISC and our distinguished speakers as the local Atlanta critical infrastructure protection community pioneers this collaboration."

Richard A. DeMillo, John P. Imlay, Jr. Dean of the Georgia Tech College of Computing, will provide the opening address for the meeting. A panel discussion on REALID and a presentation from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on the DHS National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP) will follow. This meeting is open to members of the media as well as the general public.

A[micro]   WHEN: Wednesday, August 16, 2006 from 1:00-5:00 p.m. ET

A[micro]   WHERE: Georgia Tech Research Institute Conference Center
          250 14th Street, NW
          Atlanta, GA 30318
          Directions available at
          http://www.gtri.gatech.edu/visitorinfo/gtriconfdriving.html


A[micro]   INTERVIEW OPPORTUNITIES:
A[micro]       --  InfraGard - Dr. Phyllis Schneck, Chairman, INMA Board of
            Directors
A[micro]       --  USSS/ECTF - Victor Erevia, Assistant Special Agent in
            Charge
A[micro]       --  GTISC - Dr. Mustaque Ahamad, Director