Stanley Mierzwa, a cybersecurity expert and lecturer at Kean University, has recently highlighted the lack of centralized reporting on cyber incidents involving non-profit and non-governmental organizations in critical infrastructure sectors such as healthcare and public health. According to Mierzwa, this lack of centralized reporting creates gaps for researchers, IT experts, and others who are interested in analyzing trends in their industries.
In an interview with Information Security Media Group, Mierzwa emphasized the importance of non-profit organizations in providing critical services to underserved communities. He stressed the need for these organizations to keep their systems up and running in order to meet the needs of the community effectively. To address this issue, Mierzwa spearheaded a project with students and faculty to create a central repository that would provide insights into cyber incidents affecting non-profits and non-government organizations.
Having access to intelligence specific to certain sectors, such as non-profits, can help organizations understand trends and potential risks. Mierzwa explained that this type of intelligence can be valuable to organization leaders, from CEOs to chief operating officers, as it allows them to proactively strengthen their cybersecurity defenses.
The newly created cyber incident repository contains information on the types of incidents affecting non-profit and non-government organizations, as well as the gaps in incident reporting that Mierzwa’s team discovered during their research. The repository is intended to benefit a wide range of users, including researchers, IT professionals, and organization leaders seeking to improve their cybersecurity posture.
During the interview, Mierzwa also discussed the top cyber issues to watch in the healthcare sector for 2025. As the director of the Center for Cybersecurity at Kean University, Mierzwa’s research interests include cybersecurity risk management, cyber competencies, policy, global public health, and law enforcement technologies. With a background that spans academia, non-profit organizations, public health, IT leadership in the private sector, law enforcement, and cybersecurity roles with international impact, Mierzwa brings a breadth of experience to his work in the cybersecurity field.
Overall, Mierzwa’s efforts to create a central repository for cyber incident data involving non-profits and non-government organizations highlight the importance of understanding and addressing cybersecurity risks in critical infrastructure sectors. By providing valuable insights and intelligence, this repository has the potential to enhance the cybersecurity posture of organizations and ultimately protect the communities they serve.