Architecture Technology Corporation Enters into a Strategic Alliance with Cyber Skills

Architecture Technology Corporation (“ATCorp”) and Munster Technological University (MTU) are pleased to announce that they have entered a long-term strategic partnership to provide workforce development training for the Irish labor force.

Cyber Skills, funded by the Higher Education Authority, is an alliance of academic partners which include Munster Technological University, Technological University Dublin, University of Limerick, University College Dublin, and the Commonwealth Cyber Initiative based in Virginia Tech in the US. This brings together Industry, Academia and Government to represent the needs of the Cyber Security Ecosystem in Ireland. ATCorp is a US based research and development firm located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. ATCorp is the developer of CYRIN which is a cloud based virtual cyber security training platform.

Cyber Skills addresses the critical cybersecurity skills shortage of professionals by providing innovative, creative and research informed courses. Individuals can choose from specially designed pathways which will provide learners with the skill sets needed for a specific job role. Students can also build their own skill sets by choosing several different micro-credentials. All classes are online, fully flexible and university accredited. By collaborating with academic institutions, learners using the CYRIN cyber range training platform, can keep ahead of cyber-criminals in a fast-changing technological environment.

Cyber Skills works closely with industry to gain insights into the needs of the cyber security workplace. This is to ensure that pathways and micro-credentials are designed in a way that targets up-skilling and re-skilling efficiently to produce workplace ready graduates.

Cyber Skills pathways and micro-credentials take enrolments twice a year and uses the CYRIN cyber range as a foundation for labs. CYRIN provides three levels of training for Cyber Skills learners.

Level 1 of CYRIN offers approximately 45 skills development interactive labs. Many of these labs offer training on commonly used tools in network administration and defense. Level 2 of CYRIN provides a number of individual and team cyber security exercises including Red Team/Blue Team exercises, Capture the Flag, Man in the middle and others. Level 3 of CYRIN offers 8 cyber-attack scenarios on IT networks and industrial control system networks (ICS/SCADA). When a subscriber signs on to Level 3, an IT or ICS network appears on the screen. A few moments later the network is randomly attacked, and the student is to mitigate the attack and return the network to its pre-attack state. The full CYRIN course catalog can be accessed at https://cyrin.atcorp.com/catalog/

Cyber Skills use CYRIN’s Exercise Builder application allowing each instructor to author his/her own training content on CYRIN. Exercise Builder also allows instructors to modify CYRIN instructional content to the specific needs of their classroom. Finally, Exercise Builder allows each instructor to create cyber-attack simulations for students to practice “live fire” cyber defense.

Dr. Ken Thurber, President and CEO of ATCorp recently commented on the MTU-ATCorp alliance “We are pleased to work with Munster Technological University and the Cyber Ireland cluster members to use our technology to enhance and compliment Irish workforce skills when it comes to one of today’s most pressing issues. That of, cyber security defense”.

“Cyber Skills cyber range will allow for the delivery and development of advanced cybersecurity skills for academic/work-based learners to hone their skills in a highly-realistic training environment. Our cyber range environment will also provide greater capacity for collaborative R&D industry focused projects on emerging research topics related to cybersecurity and digital.” Prof Donna O’Shea, Chair of Cyber Security at Munster Technological University.

For more information about this important alliance please contact:

March 11, 2022

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