Rep. Kerans convenes National Guard Cyberbrief for Municipalities
National Guard Cyber Threat briefing convenes officials from Danvers, Peabody, Salem, Lynn and Beverly to explore Municipals' Cyber attack awareness and preparedness
Danvers -- Oct. 1
My time on the Committee on Advanced IT and Cybersecurity has been a primer in cyberattacks and how we can prevent them. Second to Academia, our municipalities are the most vulnerable. Whether ransomware, targeting water supplies or the grid or using the Internet to sow misinformation and hate that can lead to incidents that will demand a response from local public safety and emergency personnel, the cyber ecosystem can be a powerful weapon. We have to be prepared.
Last week, I convened the Massachusetts National Guard Cyber team to share their latest information with North Shore cities and towns' IT directors and Emergency Management personnel, including Danvers IT Director Colby Cousens (who just received an award for his Cyber Awareness and Preparedness), Peabody Fire Chief Joe Daley and Salem State University Director of Security and Information Tom Cesso. Reps. Tom Walsh of Peabody, Pete Capano of Lynn, Jamie Belsito of Topsfield, and Senator Joan Lovely attended, as well.
The Massachusetts National Guard can provide Plan Review to a city or town, threat modeling and a full vulnerability assessment.
As Chief Daley said , "It's critical to look at these vulnerabilities across departments."
My thanks to the Mass National Guard for working with me to make this briefing possible. Special thanks to Col. Margaret White, Col. Jason Oberton, Col. Tim Hunt, Maj. Joe Flume and Sgt. Ed Keefe of the Massachusetts Fusion Center and Secretary of Emergency Information and Security Curtis Wood.
Our view: Kerans, Parisella for state representative (Salem News)
The winner of Tuesday's vote will find themselves entering a legislative maelstrom. The COVID-19 pandemic has upended life in the Bay State in myriad ways. Schools are teaching students of all ages with a mix of in-person and online training. Many of those students do not have access to technology or adequate space and privacy for learning at home. Nursing homes are fighting to keep the virus at bay while continuing to battle shortages of personal protective equipment. Businesses of all sizes, but particularly small businesses, are struggling to stay open as the state enforces social distancing and occupancy limits. Unemployment remains around 10%, and no one really knows what next year's state budget will look like.
Our current situation calls for an experienced hand. That's why we are urging residents to vote for Kerans.
5 candidates vie for North Shore seat (CommonWealth Magazine)
The Democrat in the field is Sally Kerans of Danvers, who actually held the seat for three terms from 1991 to 1997 before stepping down to focus on her family.
“This is about shared sacrifice, this is our generation’s World War II, and if the wrong people are elected, we will not have a functioning federal government that can partner with states and families to help communities. What is happening right now with unemployment and sickness and everything else simply is not sustainable.”
For Sally Kerans, It's Back To The Future (Lynn Item)
“With COVID and what we are going through, it struck me that this was the exact same situation I was in when I first ran in 1990,” Kerans said. “No sooner than I was sworn in back then, we had a deep fiscal crisis on our hands. We had to use a three-prong approach to solving it and restore economic stability — cuts, revenue enhancement and use of the rainy-day funds. It was so similar to what’s happening today in our state, where federal assistance is absolutely critical and, unfortunately, we do not have a functioning federal government under this president.
13th Essex District Race: Sally Kerans ready to tackle the big issues (Danvers Herald)
Kerans believes she can bring a lot to the table as the next 13th Essex state rep.
“There is work to be done,” Kerans said. “I view this as a way for me to bring my experience and perspective to bear on what I know will be big challenges. I believe in fairness and equity. We will muster our best selves and efforts to tackle these things together.”