Gerda L. Kamberova - Spring 2024 DeMatteis Newsletter

It’s All About the Students Gerda L. Kamberova, PhD (Computer Science) Department of Computer Science Chairperson and Professor Gerda.L.Kamberova@hofstra.edu I would like to use this space to highlight two student clubs in the Department of Computer Science Department that exhibit the enthusiasm of our growing student population. The Hofstra Women in Cybersecurity Club (WiCys) chapter is actively involved in organizing Capture the Flag (CTF) competitions. These hands-on challenges provide members with practical experience in cybersecurity concepts, problem-solving skills, and teamwork. I am indebted to Desray Desir, the Vice President of the club, for providing me with the following summary of their recent projects and activities. Last semester the members helped organize and participated in the competition at Hofstra, supported by Amazon, in which multiple regional teams took part. In January 2023, WiCyS sponsored a panel on the challenges AI poses for Cybersecurity and the opportunities it offers for combatting Cybersecurity threats. The panel was co-hosted by the Zarb and DeMatteis schools and organized by the ACM Metro Chapter. Club teams will compete in the CTF scheduled this semester which will include valuable prizes for participants. Another event WiCyS provided to its members was “Conducting a Vulnerability Assessment as a Security Analyst”, hosted by Clicked + IBM. Participants had a chance to work and collaborate with universities around the USA and Canada to complete a challenge and obtain a certificate as well as create a portfolio. This semester, the club is excited to announce the launch of a private WiCyS Book Collection and games library in SIC available to all members. This collection features a curated selection of computer science and cybersecurity literature. One of the key highlights of the club is the annual opportunity for members to attend the WiCyS conference, a premier event in the cybersecurity community. The club regularly hosts guest speakers from various sectors of the cybersecurity industry. Any students reading this who are interested in joining, I encourage to send an email to huwicys@gmail.com. As the above story indicates, the student clubs are student driven. At the celebration for the opening of the Science & Innovation Center last fall, it was noticed that the computer science students would have no "club table" at the information area other than WiCyS which is primarily focused on Cybersecurity. An idea was then born: let’s use the opportunity to start a club! An empty table with a sign "Computer Science Club to be... Sign up!" complete with empty signup sheets was displayed. To my amazement, at the end of the celebration, two pages were filled with names of students who wanted to be part of the future club. This enthusiastic group of students organized in record time and were soon officially recognized as a Hofstra club: C.O.D.E. was born. The club has a strong following, growing rapidly to 80 signed members, of whom 35 are active! C.O.D.E, which stands for Computing, Opportunity, Development and Exploration, specializes in computer science, engineering, and everything in between. The club offers a welcoming environment for students interested in these fields. Through various activities and workshops, they aim to equip members with practical skills essential for their academic and professional pursuits; to provide a social platform were students can

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