Cyberattacks

This week’s lesson is all about cyberattacks.

Cyberattacks are malicious Internet operations launched primarily by criminal organizations seeking to steal money, financial data, intellectual property or to simply disrupt the operations of company. Countries also get involved in what are referred to as state-sponsored cyberattacks, where they seek to learn classified information on a geopolitical rival or to just “send a message”.

Resources

Are you READY?
Cyber Crime
Cybergate
Grid Protection
BEST resources

Research/Reflect/Brainstorm

Describe what a cyberattack constitutes to you. As a group, discuss and brainstorm how a cyberattack could affect you at different levels; at home, at school or in a business-setting. Then, write a list of words that come to your mind when you hear the word “cyberattack”.

Activity

When we discuss catastrophes, we normally focus on natural disasters. However, we would be remiss if we left out man-made disasters.

In this activity, we will focus on man-made disasters. In the past, this would undoubtedly have meant war; but, in all likelihood, we will fight the wars of the future with technology – with cyberattacks leading the charge.

As a group, prepare for a cyberattack. Your BEST team uses a lot of technology including computers, networks and software that would be a prime target for an attack. What will you do in order to ensure that your team is ready to protect your equipment and your information during a technological siege?

Imagine you’re in the armed forces, and write a report to your commanding officer explaining how your BEST robotics team is prepared and secure in case of a cyber-attack.

Here are some things to consider when drafting your plans:
1. What is a cyberattack?
2. What can it affect, and how will it affect its targets?
3. How can you protect yourself and/or your company?
4. What resources are out there to protect your company from a cyberattack?
5. How is the website you use for your team protected?

BEST Connection

BEST Robotics offers many different resources and is sponsored by many different amazing companies. Choose one or two of these resources and research how they are protected from cyberattacks.

Community Connection

Government or government agencies are the most-often targeted when it comes to cyberattacks. Do you have any companies in your community or surrounding areas that are associated with cyberattack protection? Maybe you drive by a company every day and wonder what that company does – maybe they fight cyber crime, or even protect you from cyberattacks.

Bloom’s Taxonomy

Bloom’s Taxonomy: create, explore, evaluate, generate, include, identify, list, observe, reflect, review, use, and write

Workforce Skills

Critical thinking, materials evaluation, reading comprehension, science, writing, research