Scientific conferences, meetings, and workshops enrich the teaching and research life at the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences. The Year of Science, which is once again packed with interesting events in the 2015–16 academic year, kicked off on November 11 with a highly successful event on the topic of“IT Security in a Social and Business Context.”
In his welcoming remarks, the university’s president, Prof. Dr. phil. Friedrich Albrecht, immediately took up this theme. What does Industry 4.0 mean—and is it a curse or a blessing for the economy? How do virtually globally networked production and data security risks coexist?
Prof. Jörg Lässig then delved into the technical subject matter with his presentation—and shared astonishing and downright alarming examples of hacker attacks. These attacks are not only about destroying computer hardware but also, among other things, involve very serious tampering with motor vehicles.
The event’s keynote speaker, Prof. Martin Gaedke from Chemnitz University of Technology, gave a vivid account of his own journey—from being a hacker in school who cracked his teacher’s password to becoming an IT specialist in Chemnitz and Karlsruhe. The presentation demonstrated what IT security means in 2015, in which areas significant developments can be expected in the near future, and what consequences these may have.
Karsten Jähnigen, who develops cloud-based service solutions for businesses at his company Solid Servision, presented the industry’s perspective. He confirmed that many companies remain very skeptical about developments in data storage and usage.
Startup Perspective: Prof. Klaus ten Hagen, a professor at HSZG specializing in “databases” and co-founder of Kiana Analytics, based in Görlitz, reported on his entrepreneurial activities in the collection and analysis of data. He had particularly impressive insights to share regarding the field of marketing (retail and tourism). For example, he discussed how smartphone data is used to track visitor flows in an amusement park and how this information is leveraged to tailor specific offers. He also discussed how email addresses are collected and used for targeted communication with customers, and how it is possible to analyze purchasing behavior in retail and deploy advertising tools accordingly.
During the panel discussion with Prof. Marietta Spangenberg, Prof. Martin Gaedke, Karsten Jähnigen, Prof. Klaus ten Hagen, and Dr. Stephan Meyer (moderated by Prof. Jörg Lässig), the complexity of this topic was once again highlighted. In the future, it will not only be about what is technically feasible—it will also be about “engaging” the users and consumers of information technology, developing specialized training and continuing education programs, and handling the media with care.
And, fitting for the date (11/11), the participants were of course also able to enjoy some pancakes!
The current calendar of academic events at the HSZG can be found here: 
. For further questions and additional information, please contact Mr. Lutz Haberland (l.haberland@hszg.de).
Photos: Frank Riedel and Jürgen Möldner, HS
Contact:
Sabine Scholz
Center for Knowledge and Technology TransferPhone: 03583 612 4575
Email: s.scholz@hszg.de