In February, Temple’s Information Technology Auditing and Cyber-Security program hosted an open forum in which top experts offered industry insight, analysis, and advice to MIS students both within and outside the ITACS degree.
The open dialogue featured Philip Taddeo (Senior Manager of IT Audit, Vanguard), Brooke Huttner (Senior Associate in Risk Assurance, PriceWaterhouseCoopers), Rob Goldberg (Vice President of Global Internal Audit Services, Wal-Mart), and Barbara Dolhansky (Associate Vice President or Applications Support & Development, Temple University), each of whom spoke about their experiences in the fields of IT audit, security, fraud, and beyond.
Among the many discussion topics explored, ITACS student Brian Connelly asked the panel, “How do IT Auditors protect and govern information traveling on employee cell phones, especially those of executives?”
“There is no such thing as 100% security,” answered Rob Goldberg. “That shouldn’t be the mindset; it’s not cost-effective. You must address the impact of risk of a particular threat and determine the day-to-day concerns and actions based on that.”
Later, the discussion touched upon the infamous Target data breach, which affected millions of consumers.
“It made me reconsider what types of transactions I make, especially with mobile payments,” said Barbara Dolhansky, who was a victim of the breach herself. “Consumers will drive the conversations and concern, which will make organizations more aware and push the topic of security to the top of agendas.”
Philip Taddeo elaborated: “Data Analytics [is now used] when determining and even predicting fraud. Analyzing the normal functions of a role and identifying abnormal activity has become increasingly important in assessing the current controls that a business has in place.”
The hour-long panel was followed by an informal reception in Speakman Hall where students and mentors partook of food, drinks, and lively conversation.
