ROCK HILL, SOUTH CAROLINA – Winthrop University’s 2019 Whitton Executive Series will feature one of the leading authorities on cyber security.
Elie Bursztein, head of Google’s anti-abuse research team, will be the keynote speaker for the Feb. 27 event. Bursztein is best known for his work on discovering ways to protect individuals from cyber threats and hacks via the internet, video games and other web-based services.
“Everything we do from talking on the phone to driving our car requires that engineers put good cyber security practices into place,” said Andrew Besmer, a former colleague of Bursztein’s at Google and current cyber security expert within the College of Business Administration.
A native of France, Bursztein has a background in computer science. Prior to Google, he was a post-doctoral fellow with Stanford University’s Security Laboratory. He has several notable achievements in computer and network security and is the author of a number of publications, blogs and talks.
The cyber expert joins a list of top business professionals featured during the annual Whitton Executive Series, a training series designed for business leaders and the business community. Sponsored by Elaine Whitton Davis and the College of Business Administration, the business series launched in 2012 and offers support and free access to current state-of-the-art knowledge relevant to business practice.
The 2019 event will kick off Feb. 27 with a reception at 11 a.m. in Macfeat House (adjacent to Thurmond Building and Vivian M. Carroll Hall), followed by a program featuring Bursztein’s keynote address at noon in the Whitton Auditorium in Carroll Hall.
“[Elie] is also at the forefront of the cyber security battle. Elie has unique insights into cyber security practices that few others do, and when Elie talks, people listen,” said Besmer, who will serve as moderator.
Register online for the 2019 Whitton Executive Series, which is free and open to the public.
For more information, contact Celeste Tiller ’01, ’04, director of external relations and the Institute of Management, at tillerc@winthrop.edu or 803/323-2504.
