Merit conference focuses on cyber security

By TOM STANKARD

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Ironwood — As technology advances, Merit presented a conference about cyber security, broadband, and social engineering on Tuesday at Gogebic Community College.

In the morning, Jim Lundberg, Merit Upper Peninsula Relations Manager, spoke to local area professions to emphasize the importance of cyber security.

While discussing password making for online accounts, Lundberg said passwords are typically challenging to remember.

“People are going to write it down and tape it to their computer,” he said.

To help remember passwords, he recommended creating a ‘pass-phrase.’

“Use a combination of numbers and letters, upper and lower-case,” he said. “It will become easier to remember.”

In attendance, Tonia Cronin, Merit program manager of the Michigan Cyber Civilian Corporation, said longer passwords are “more secure.”

“Length is important because the difference between a seven character password and 10 character password is 18 hours to hack,” she said. “It helps you know it’s going to take longer to get into.”

Concerning social media, Lundberg said people should be more cautious about sharing information.

“Who can see the information I’m putting online?” He asked. “Have I set the privacy settings?”

To emphasize his point, he asked the approximately 20 members in the audience if they trust “everyone they’re connected to?”

“These are things you need to think about,” he said. “What are you willing to risk by providing information?”

Lundberg said personal information might cause people to wonder if user’s information might be their password.

“That person really likes his or her dog, I wonder if that’s their password,” he said.

Lundberg suggested people ask themselves, “what am I sharing?” before posting to social media.

“Once it’s out there, it’s out there,” he said.

Merit President and CEO Joseph Sawasky said Merit is a “nonprofit, member-owned organization formed in 1966 to design and implement a computer network between public universities in Michigan.”