Georgia Governor Nathan Deal (R) announced the establishment of a $50 million Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center on Wednesday.
Set to be located in Augusta, Ga., the center will be a state-owned cyber range to bring together academia, private industry, and government to help establish cybersecurity standards across state and local agencies. The center’s work will develop and practice protocols for responding to cyber threats.
“Cybersecurity is especially important now that cybercrime is bigger than the global black market for marijuana, cocaine and heroin combined. The protection of Georgia’s citizens, businesses and institutions in the digital realm is becoming significantly more necessary as cybercrime continues to grow,” Deal said in a statement.
“Building on our efforts to keep Georgia safe and maintain its status as the No. 1 state in which to do business, we are taking action to ensure that Georgia leads the way on cybersecurity,” he added.
The governor’s office said the new center will focus on training, education, research, and development as well as act as an incubator hub for cybersecurity startup companies.
“Close collaboration between public and private entities is paramount to the success of the center, with support for this initiative spreading across multiple sectors,” the governor’s office said.
The Georgia Technology Authority will work entities including the University System of Georgia, the Augusta University Cyber Institute, the Technical College System of Georgia, local school systems, the Georgia National Guard, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, federal agencies, and private corporations in the facility’s establishment.
The governor’s office quoted the National Security Agency (NSA) as saying ““The Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center will allow our best and brightest, from both the public and private sector, to develop critical relationships in an innovative and collaborative training environment. We laud Governor Deal’s strategic vision and decision to build the Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center in Augusta.”
The announcement highlighted that the Augusta placement will take advantage of the NSA’s relationship with Augusta University as well as the Army Cyber Center of Excellence at Fort Gordon and the future site of Army Cyber Command.
“Investments such as the Cyber Range will not only enable our Nation to maintain its advantage in a highly contested cyberspace domain, it will also allow for the type of partnerships between the Department of Defense, Academia, and Industry that is required to attract, produce, and retain the caliber of workforce necessary to be a global leader in cyberspace operations and cyber technologies. We look forward to the opportunities that this Cyber Range will present to the local community, the State, and the Nation,” Gen. John Morrison, Commanding General of the Army Cyber Center of Excellence and Fort Gordon, said in a statement.