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AIUB signs SCP agreement with Microsoft
AIUB Vice Chancellor, Dr. Carmen Z. Lamagna (L) and Microsoft Country Manager, Feroz Mahmud signs SCP deed
American International University-Bangladesh (AIUB) has joined Microsoft's Security Cooperation Program (SCP) for educational institutions on December 17. Through SCP, Microsoft provides a structured way for governments and Microsoft to engage in cooperative security activities in areas of computer incident response, attack mitigation, and citizen outreach. The goal of the SCP is to help governments address threats to national security, economic strength, and public safety more efficiently and effectively through cooperative projects and information sharing. This program was launched in February 2005 and a government entity from Bangladesh signed an agreement with Microsoft in May 2007. The Security Cooperation Program for educational institutions is a specific programme under the umbrella of the broader SCP; and AIUB has become the first university outside the USA to sign up for this prestigious programme. The agreement was signed at a function held at a local hotel. The event also marked the certificate distribution ceremony for the government officials who participated in the first Security Cooperation Program Workshop organised by the Public Sector team of Microsoft Bangladesh recently. "SCP focuses manly on security and also on how to help the local software economy develop," said Jeffrey Paine, Microsoft's government engagement program manager, public sector, Asia Pacific region, who was present at the event. "The SCP is offered by Microsoft without a charge. In the true spirit of partnership this programme is designed to open channels for collaboration between Microsoft and public sector agencies on IT security related issues," he added. "SCP will also enable academic institutions to have access to the valuable security information provided under the programme," he informed. As a participant, AIUB and Microsoft will work cooperatively, exchanging information that can be used to better anticipate, help prevent, and respond to and mitigate the effects of information technology (IT) security attacks. The types of data to be exchanged include: - Information about publicly known and reported vulnerabilities that Microsoft is investigating. - Information about upcoming and released security updates to facilitate resource planning and deployment. - Security incident metrics. - Incident information in the event of a critical incident or emergency. - Information on Microsoft product security, the Microsoft approach to security, and its incident response process. In addition to information exchange, the SCP provides opportunities for cooperation with Microsoft on security-related projects, including: - Cooperative outreach and education activities, including development and distribution of materials and special events. - Collaboration in computer incident response processes, including joint response in the event of an emergency. The Security Cooperation Program is a no-fee programme that helps further strengthen the comprehensive Microsoft approach to provide the technology and services that help enable secure government computing environments. This initiative also builds on the security mobilisation effort as part of the Microsoft Trustworthy Computing Initiative.
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