Cybersecurity Lab

Take a Virtual Tour of the PBSC Cybersecurity Lab

"We are literally training people on the latest threats that are being launched against organizations," says Don Gladney, Ed.D., associate dean for the B.A.S. programs and a former IBM executive. "Our graduates will be ready to go to work and hit the ground running."

Our Vision

The vision for the Cybersecurity Lab is to enhance and support the training and education of Palm Beach State College Cybersecurity students in both onsite and on line environments by enhancing the academic curriculum through hands on exercises, demonstrations, special projects, and competitions. Participating faculty, staff and students will be encouraged to collaborate with public and private entities to ensure the labs relevance to current workplace challenges and innovations designed to thwart cybersecurity attacks. Ultimately the lab will play a vital role in producing workplace ready graduates.

About the Cybersecurity Lab

Palm Beach State College’s Cybersecurity Lab allows students to engage in real-world simulations to strengthen their cyber defense skills.
The lab’s cornerstone device is the Ixia BreakingPoint Storm™, a state-of-the-art stress tester used to detect vulnerabilities in networks and data centers.
PBSC is one of only two higher education institutions in Florida to have the Ixia product, which is used by major corporations and government agencies to improve system security and train staff.
The lab has network servers running various operating systems, virtual machine capability, switches, routers and a soon-to-be-installed video wall that will enable real-time threat visualization on multiple screens. Every session is recorded, so students are able to do analysis as well.

What will I learn?

Computer hackers—the secretive, faceless criminals who steal, corrupt and disrupt data and infrastructure—are about to meet their match.

With access to lab equipment, students gain a unique edge in this fast-growing field. According to Burning Glass Technologies, cybersecurity job postings grew 91 percent from 2010-2014, a rate three times faster than IT job postings overall.

History

The Cybersecurity Lab hosted its grand opening in September 2015.
The new lab is integral to the school’s commitment to create a fully articulated, entry-level to advanced career pathway in cybersecurity using the $1.2 million in federal money awarded to the College in 2013.
Funds are part of a $10.2 million U.S. Department of Labor TAACCCT grant made to a consortium of seven Florida colleges led by the College of Central Florida. The consortium’s initiative, Florida XCEL-IT: Information Technology Careers for Rural Areas, focuses on developing programs in manufacturing, logistics and supply chain management, and cybersecurity.

Scheduling an Event?

“Please contact Cyberlab Manager Ariel Contreras (contrea1@palmbeachstate.edu) or Charmaine Williams (williamc@palmbeachstate.edu) to schedule an event or an ongoing class with your desired dates and time that you would like to schedule the lab.”