Governor Bill Owens Declares October as “National Cyber Security Awareness Month”

Public and Private Sectors to Work Together to Educate Users About Threats

Denver, CO -September 20, 2006 - The State of Colorado and the Colorado Cyber Security Program are joining with the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) and the MultiState Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) in partnership with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, to declare October as “Cyber Security Awareness Month.” Governor Owens siegned the proclamation declaring October as Cyber Security Awareness Month.

National Cyber Security Awareness Month, first established in October 2004, is a collective effort to raise cyber security awareness nationwide and to empower citizens, businesses, government, and schools to improve their cyber security preparedness and ensure a safer Internet experience.

“The State of Colorado acts as a resource for gathering information from the federal government and other states on cyber threats and provides two way sharing of information between and among the states and, ultimately, with local governments and the business community,” said Mark Weatherford, Colorado Chief Information Security Officer. “It is important for the public and private sectors to work together to educate users about the threats in the online world. With increasing Internet hazards such as identity theft, spyware, and other malicious online activity, is critically important to heighten awareness and educate Internet users of all ages about the dangers they face.”

The State of Colorado and the Colorado Cyber Security Program, along with other States and the National Cyber Security Awareness campaign, provide materials to facilitate the delivery of the NCSA message. As part of the National Cyber Security Awareness Campaign, a “Toolkit” of information and handouts is being made available to the citizens of Colorado.

The purpose of the Toolkit is to promote the delivery of a consistent cyber security awareness message. Some of the information in the Toolkit includes:
More information and Toolkit materials for the public will be available online at www.colorado.gov/cybersecurity

Other resources include:
Colorado Cyber Security Program
Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center website
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Computer Emergency Readiness Team
National Cyber Security Alliance