‘Cyber security is very simple if you know how to explain it,” says Adv. Rami Tamam, head of Ono International School’s MBA program in Business Administration, with Specialization in Cyber Security and Forensics. “Cyber security is complicated when you are dealing with people who don’t have enough professional skills to explain it.”
In recent years, cyber threats have emerged as one of the most pressing challenges for organizations across all sectors – from finance and healthcare to government, industry, and the private sphere. Sophisticated attacks are on the rise, including data breaches, ransomware, financial fraud, and intrusions targeting critical infrastructure.
Tamam, a renowned cyber expert, is co-director of Intact Cyber, a company specializing in cyber crisis management, and has managed dozens of cyber crisis incidents in Israel and around the world. He explains that the goal of Ono’s new international MBA with specialization in Cyber Security and Forensics is to make the subject understandable to a broad scope of individuals – not just tech experts.
“Our vision is to make cybertechnology something that is not only for professional people. We want lay people who don’t know cyber language, who come from various fields of experience and knowledge, to learn to speak the language of cyber and to know how to maintain and manage cyber routines in order to keep their organizations safe.”
Cyber security is the fastest-growing career field in technology today. Tamam says that there are two reasons for the rapid growth of cyber, compared to other hi-tech areas. Because of the increasing influence of AI, which today can perform many high-level tasks that were traditionally given to programmers, fewer people are now needed for many technical tasks.
Cybertech, on the other hand, is about managing a crisis in a technological environment. “This means that ultimately you are dealing with people.”
A second reason for the increased popularity of cybertechnology, Tamam suggests, is the role of wars and conflicts between nations in bringing cybertechnology to the forefront. “Whether it’s a war in Ukraine, Africa, or in Israel, you need cyber capabilities, and the waves that come from the war are extending to the civil arena. When one country attacks another, it attacks the infrastructure.
“It attacks the banks. It attacks the schools. It attacks everything that creates trust, which makes citizens think their country is not safe enough. They are doing that by disturbing the peace, by attacking companies, by getting private privileged data, and by cyberattacks on hospitals and schools.”
Tamam notes that the instructors in Ono’s MBA Cyber Security program come from the industry and bring a great deal of practical, hands-on experience in cyber security.
ONO INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL’S program will offer two specialized tracks – an Incident Response Program (IR) and a GRC & Privacy Program. The IR program is designed for students who want to specialize in the technical aspects of cyber security. Students will gain hands-on experience in advanced cyber labs, exploring attack scenarios, implementing technical solutions, analyzing threats, and responding to real-time incidents.
Tamam notes that the IR program features the “red and blue” teams concept, which divides the students in the classroom into two groups. Red teams simulate cyberattacks to identify vulnerabilities, while blue teams defend against those attacks. Another noteworthy course is forensic analysis of computer crime scenes and evidence analysis.
The GRC – governance, risk, compliance, and privacy programs – is focused on the managerial, regulatory, and governance aspects of cyber crisis management. It is designed for executives, legal advisers, accountants, policymakers, and regulatory professionals who want to better understand cyber threats and apply that understanding to make informed business decisions.
Both tracks are built on the concept that managers need to understand cyber, and cyber security professionals need to understand the language of business.
The MBA Cyber Security track also includes a course regarding ethics, AI, and cyber. “There are ethical questions, especially about the use of AI as a defense tool in cyber,” says Tamam, “or questions about offensive cyber techniques as a preventive measure that is taken against an entity, a company, a person, or a state.”
Ono’s program also features DPO (data protection officer) training, which explores the right to privacy and legal frameworks under Israeli and international law. Ono was the first school in Israel to offer DPO training as an academic course.
The GRC program features courses that teach students how to write a cyber playbook for an organization, which provides a course of action in the event of a cyber crisis. Course theory for both tracks, says Tamam, is essentially the same.
Ono’s International School’s MBA program in Business Administration, with Specialization in Cyber Security and Forensics, offers six professional certifications: an MBA in Business Administration with specialized focus: a Specialization Certificate in Cyber Security and Forensics; DPO – Certified Privacy Officer for organizational compliance; Cyber Expert Director Certificate with Specialized qualification aligned with the guidelines of the Bank of Israel and Israeli Government Companies Authority; and a CSFE Certified Cyber Security and Forensic Expert issued by the Israel Chamber of Information Technology.
The DPO and Cyber Expert Director certificates are credentials required worldwide by regulators who mandate these roles within various corporations. The demand for professionals in these positions significantly exceeds the supply.
“These diplomas are special because they are granted by an academic institute,” explains Tamam. “Most academic institutions in Israel and around the world don’t give professional diplomas in cyber. We think that the professional diplomas have an additional value, beyond the academic degree.”
Cyber courses within Ono’s International MBA program meet twice a week for four and a half hours for one year. Students who have completed the course of study, says Tamam, can work as analysts, forensic experts, and manage the cyber risks of the companies that they work with. “We want them to be what they have been doing in their companies and organizations until now, but with the leverage that can enable them to be the ace in every organization where they are working, not only because they are teachers or lawyers but also cyber experts.”
TAMAM POINTS out that becoming a cybertech expert represents a major commitment to remain current in the field. “Being a cyber expert means that you must constantly invest a lot of time and effort. We can open the door for you, but in order to get in, you have to be relevant at all times,” he says. “You have to learn more. We can teach you where to look for the solutions, but you have to learn the solutions by yourself.”
Since Hamas’s Oct. 7 mega-attacks, he notes, Israel has received more cyberattacks per capita than any other state in the world. “Because of that,” says Tamam with a smile, “we have most of the solutions in the world. I think this is a very unique opportunity to study cyber in Israel, which is the cyber lab of the world. I think we know more about cyber than anybody else on the globe.”
Ono’s cyber program is constantly being updated to reflect changes in the hi-tech world. “You don’t see the same presentations from year to year,” says Tamam. “We have to be flexible and be agile in order to make ourselves relevant to the cyber arena. It is not like a history course where you can teach the same material every year.”
Tamam has managed more than 45 cyber crises over the past five years, which makes him eminently qualified for this undertaking. He has headed the cyber program at Ono for Israeli students since its inception, and he previously led the national advanced cyber investigators’ course, one of the most renowned programs of its kind in the world.
A cyber crisis can create tension and anxiety within a company, but Tamam says that he tells his cyber experts that managing the stress is the easiest part for a true cyber expert. “Be the most knowledgeable person in the room, and after five minutes everyone will want to hear what you have to say.”
This article was written in cooperation with Ono Academic College.