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Information Security Events Today
Join in-person Information Security events happening right now
Welcome to the first 2026 AWS Melbourne Well-Architected User Group Meetup!
Hi Architects,
Welcome to our first AWS Melbourne Well-Architected User Group Meetup for 2026, including more exceptional speakers and topics! :-D
At each meetup we covered off various pillars in detail, best-practices and insights from industry leaders that specialise in the Well-Architected Framework.
And giving away drones, of course. Lots of drones.
Our speakers this month include:
* **Mystery Speaker**
**Can Cost Optimisation Improve your other pillars?**
In this talk, we'll go through whether Cost Optimisation can improve your security, operational excellence, reliability, etc. and more importantly, how (spoiler alert - it can but it will be an interesting exploration).
This month's menu will include:
* Pizzas
* Beer: Nastro Azzurro
* Wine: Big and red š¤¤
NB: Please check in up the stairs from the ground floor to the Mezzanine Level.
So come join us at 5:30 for a 6pm **SHARP** start, followed by beer, wine, pizza and friendly networking after our talks :-)
Kiro Night: Build a Working Agentic App with Kiro
AWS Programming and Tools is hosting a special Kiro Night, a practical, fun, and fully hands on learning event focused on the Kiro Agentic IDE.
This session is designed to be interactive and engaging, with two learning paths to choose from. A guided path will walk through the fundamentals, while an active path will have you building an application end to end.
Whichever you choose, you will be coding along throughout the session.
Expect a relaxed, builder friendly atmosphere with food and drinks provided. Perfect for anyone curious about agentic development or looking to learn Kiro in a practical way with the community.
Bring your laptop and be ready to get hands on.
MELBOURNE BAYSIDE TENNIS MEETUP @ ORMOND TENNIS CLUB
We are also amalgamated with members from Ormond Tennis Club. Sets are organized and rotated. So come down and enjoy a relaxed social night at Ormond Tennis Club.
Service Collection: Hearts, Tickets & Happy Teamsš
Ahead of Valentineās Day, join us at the Atlassian Melbourne office for an Atlassian Community Event exploring modern service management - and why the best service experiences feel a lot like great relationships.
In the coming months, customers using Jira Service Management (JSM) will automatically get access to the āService Collectionā! This will be rolled out in phases from February to June. 2026
If youāre already using JSM, this session will help you understand whatās included and how to make the most of it.
Weāll explore the Service Collection and how Jira Service Management (JSM) and Rovo AI support modern, humanācentred service teams.
Tools included in the Service Collection
Jira Service Management (JSM)AssetsCustomer ServiceRovo AI
Weāll keep this highālevel and practical, focusing on how these tools come together rather than diving into detailed configuration.
Who should attend
This event is ideal for:
Executive Customer Service Desk Leaders
ITSM practitioners
Enterprise Service Management (ESM) teams
Operations & Support Managers
Service & Delivery Leads
Atlassian Administrators
People, HR, Legal, Facilities & Internal Services teams
Anyone using or exploring JSM and AIāenabled service delivery
Presenters
Chloe Martin ā Senior Solution Engineer, Service Collection
Micky Rathod ā Senior Solution Engineer, Service Collection
Host
Michelle Letho ā Head of Partnership & Strategic Growth, Willyama Togetha (Atlassian Partner)
Details:
Date: 11 Feb, 2026
5:30pm ā Arrival, drinks & nibbles, Valentineāsāthemed service icebreaker, group photo
6:00ā7:00pm ā Presentation & Q&A
7:00ā7:30pm ā Networking
Spots are limited ā RSVP required.
Agenda
---
Hosted By
Mit Tolia, Atlassian practice & capability lead
With 20 years of consulting experience, I specialize in helping organizations leverage Agile and technology to drive business outcomes. Passionate about Agile Lifecycle Management (ALM) tools, I work with enterprises to implement Atlassian solutions that foster business agility, enhance collaboration, and provide meaningful insights for informed decision-making.
As an Atlassian geek, my expertise spans the entire Atlassian ecosystem, with a focus on Enterprise Strategy & Planning, Cloud Migrations, and Agile Scaling. I have extensive experience in implementing Jira Align, Jira, Confluence, and Jira Service Management (JSM)āhelping teams optimize workflows, inculcate the right behaviors, and scale Agile practices from the team level to enterprise-wide adoption.
Always eager to explore new possibilities in the Atlassian space, I thrive on enabling organizations to build adaptive, customer-centric solutions that embrace the future of work and to build communities to constantly learn from each other.
Bonnie Emmerson, Atlassian Community Champion
Andy Fleming, Atlassian Community Champion
Michelle Letho, Account Executive & Networking Junkie
Michelle (Miche) Letho is the Melbourne Atlassian Community Event (ACE) Champion and an Account Executive at Willyama Togetha, Australiaās only Indigenous-owned Atlassian Platinum Partner. She helps organisations imagine, build, and scale better ways of working through Atlassian solutions that boost collaboration, visibility, and impact.
A member of the Transformers Unite leadership team, Miche supports national change and transformation events that bring practitioners together to learn and share. With a career spanning tech, FMCG, a Startup founder and consulting, she blends commercial know-how with curiosity and heart.
If she's not at networking events, outside work, she keeps busy ubering teens at calisthenics and netball. and recharges through yoga, Pilates and hiking.
---
Global Partner
Atlassian (http://atlassian.com)
Millions of users globally rely on Atlassian products every day for improving software development, project management, collaboration, and code quality.
For over a decade, Atlassian customers have come together to network, share ideas, solve problems, and find new ways to use Atlassian products. Today, more than 15,000 people take part in Atlassian community events in more than 30 countries.
---
Complete your event RSVP here: https://ace.atlassian.com/events/details/atlassian-melbourne-presents-service-collection-hearts-tickets-amp-happy-teams/.
Startup Founder Night Out: In-Person in Melbourne to ask us anything
If you have a startup idea or a growing company and you want to join the early stage accelerator Founder Institute from Melbourne, then join us for the in-person 'Founder Night Out' event. At this informal networking event, you can connect with other early-stage entrepreneurs, startup mentors, and advisors from the Founder Institute network. Buy your own food and drinks, Network with potential co-founders, advisors, alumni, mentors and partners. Most of all, ask us anything about the accelerator Founder Institute cohort from Feb-May 2026.
⯠**Attending mentors include Alex Sy (Managing Director, ATLAS Business Consulting and Mentoring Services) and Sameer Babbar**
⯠**Who should Attend?**
* Anyone interested in entrepreneurship
* Anyone who has applied to Founder Institute or finished Founder Institute in the past
* Anyone who has been a mentor with Founder Institute
* Anyone who has a pre-seed tech company or a startup idea
* Anyone interested in joining a startup accelerator
⯠**What is the Agenda?**
* Ask us anything about the startup accelerator Founder Institute
* Networking
* Buy your own food and drinks
**āÆāÆ This is an in-person eventāRSVP here: [https://fi.co/e/387158/meetup](https://fi.co/e/387158/meetup) to secure your spot and be the first to receive event details, including the location when itās announced.**
Tell Me More: Quantum Consciousness - 6 p.m. Wednesday 11/2 at the Nova
This is the World Premiere, please check in -
https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/world-premiere-tell-me-more-unlocking-quantum-consciousness-tickets-1963694691684
We will meet in the Nova Bar from 5:30 p.m. onwards, please book your tickets early, Stefan - 0437777522
Information Security Events This Week
Discover what is happening in the next few days
Bitcoin Pub Meetup
Let's drink to **Internet Money and the quiet revolution**!
Come and meet like-minded people and learn about bitcoin. This night is for newbies and regulars alike (don't worry, we don't bite!). Note that this is a very informal event, so you may need to ask the bar staff to find where the group is. There are no speakers or activities, just a casual pub session.
\*NOTE: The Fox Hotel accepts Bitcoin via the lightning network, so come with sats! An easy way to get started is to download a compatible wallet, for example Wallet of Satoshi.
This is the regular monthly pub session for the Melbourne Bitcoin community.
We recommend new comers check out https://bitcoin.rocks/ and https://bitcoin-intro.com
Find out more by visiting our telegram chat channel: https://t.me/btcmelbourne
*(yes, telegram is not our favourite solution, but it's stuck so far)*
Our February Go Meetup @ Stile
Hi Gophers!
Weāre kicking off the year with our first Go meetup in February, covering structured concurrency and anti-fragility with speakers Peter Delafosse, Max Collier, and Nick Spain.
š¤ Speakers
**Go News**
Peter Delafosse
**Better Structured Concurrency for Go**
Max Collier
An introduction to [sourcegraph/conc](https://sourcegraph.com/blog/building-conc-better-structured-concurrency-for-go) a library improving concurrency handling in Go.
Max will cover:
* The problem `conc` is designed to solve
* A walkthrough of its interface
* Insights into its internals
Based on the Sourcegraph blog āBuilding conc: Better Structured Concurrency for Go.ā
**Automating anti-fragility**
Nick Spain, Head of Platform, Stile Education
At Stile we have a bug zero policy. This encompasses actions items (for reducing toil and preventing future incidents) and test flake. This means we actively prioritise bugs all the time, they're not languishing in the backlog, action items are completed whilst people still have context, and we consistently work to reduce test flake. I will talk about: How this policy is implemented, what tooling we use to help us, and how we have automated this work using AI.
šļø Call for Speakers
Interested in speaking at an upcoming event?
Our format includes:
* lighting talks: \~10 minutes
* deep dives: 20ā30 minutes
If youād like to share a project, or idea, reach out to Katie at katie@ntptalent.com.au
š¢ Venue Partner
A huge thank you to Stile for hosting this event!
See you soon!
Leah & Katie
IN PERSON! Apache KafkaĀ® Meetup (Feb 2026)
Hello everyone! Join us for an Apache KafkaĀ® x Apache FlinkĀ® meetup on **Feb 12th from 5:30pm**, in Melbourne!
The address, agenda, and speaker information can be found below. See you there!
**šVenue**:
394 High Street Northcote, Victoria 3070
\*\*\*
**š Agenda:**
* 5:30pm: Doors open
* 5:30pm - 6:00pm: Pizza, Drinks, and Networking
* 6:00pm - 6:30pm: Haswin Vidanage, Senior Product Engineer, Papercut Software
* 6:30pm - 7:00pm: Zhengwen Peng, Staff Technical Support Engineer, Confluent
* 7:00pm - 7:30pm: Additional Networking
\*\*\*
**š” Speaker:**
Haswin Vidanage, Senior Product Engineer, Papercut Software
**Talk:**
Incremental Microservices Migration Using Change Data Capture (CDC)
**Abstract:**
This session will focus on how teams can migrate to microservices without disrupting their roadmaps.
**Bio:**
Haswin Vidanage is a Senior Product Engineer, Papercut Software. With over ten years of experience in full-stack development and microservices architecture, Haswin is passionate about designing scalable software solutions, advocating for engineering best practices, and enhancing developer productivity.
\-\-\-\-\-
**š” Speaker:**
Zhengwen Peng, Staff Technical Support Engineer, Confluent
**Talk:**
All you need to know about Kafka Transaction
**Abstract:**
In this session, we will be covering:
1. Why we need Kafka transaction.
2. How it works under the hood.
3. Some facts that the developer should be aware.
**Bio:**
Zhengwen is the staff technical support engineer at Confluent where he possess a wide and in-depth knowledge with Confluentās products, particularly on data streaming with Flink and Kafka.
\*\*\*
If you would like to speak or host our next event please let us know! community@[confluent.io](http://confluent.io/)
Studio38 Presents Daytime Clubbing for over 30s
Ready for a proper daytime club? From the team behind sell-out parties across the UK, EU & Australia, Studio38 brings **80s & 90s classics for over-30s** to a real nightclub in **Melbourne**. Great tunes, great crowd, and none of the late-night hassle.
**The Night Cat ā 14th Feb 2025 ā 3pmā8pm**
ā
Dance to the tunes you actually know (80s & 90s anthems all afternoon)
ā
Real nightclub sound & lighting ā not a pub back room
ā
Fun, friendly 30+ crowd who love the classics
ā
3PMā8PM ā home before the late-night chaos
**Tickets:** Initial Release (limited), General Admission, Group Discount (4+).
ā” *Initial Release always sells out first ā secure yours now.*
**Age policy:** 30+. Capacity is limited.
> *āBest day out Iāve had in years ā amazing crowd and tunes I actually know!ā* ā Previous Studio38 guest
See more about us here [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/studio38.club.australia/) or check out our website here [Studio38.Club](https://studio38.club/)
If you can't make this event, sign up for future parties here [Sign Up](https://studio38.club/sign-up)
š Donāt miss **Melbourneās ultimate 80s & 90s daytime party** ā grab your tickets today.
Feb 13th | Kismetrix Valentineās Eve Singles Night @ Konar Bar - Ormond
## š KISMETRIX \| True Connection
[Ticketed Event](https://www.kismetrix.com.au/all-events/?event=26193)
### Valentineās Eve Singles Drinks at Konar Bar
Hosted by **KISMETRIX \| True Connection**
š **Konar Bar (Roof Top) : 483 North Road, Ormond Vic 3204**
š
**Friday, 13 February**
š **7:00 PM ā 10:00 PM**
Valentineās Day is tomorrow.
If youāre single⦠**this is not the night to stay home.**
This is our **Valentineās Eve Singles Drinks** ā a high-energy, feel-good Friday night created for people who want *real connection*, not another night of swiping or small talk that goes nowhere.
No speed dating.
No awkward games.
No dating apps.
Just a packed bar, great drinks, and singles who actually showed up.
## š„ Age Groups (Ticketed)
To create a balanced, comfortable crowd, tickets are released in **two overlapping age groups**:
* **25ā39**
* **35ā55+**
Guests receive **coloured name tags** on arrival to help our hosts make thoughtful introductions early in the night.
As the evening unfolds, the room naturally opens into **relaxed mingling across the whole crowd**.
This format keeps the energy high, social, and natural ā exactly how a great night out should feel.
## š« About the Event
Tired of dating apps that go nowhere?
Over speed dating that feels like an interview?
So were we.
KISMETRIX \| True Connection was created for singles who want something more human ā real conversation\, real presence\, and real chemistry\.
Youāll walk into a room full of people who:
* Are done with ghosting and endless chatting
* Want to meet face-to-face, not behind a screen
* Value connection, conversation, and vibe over outcomes
Come for a drink.
Stay for the energy.
Leave glad you didnāt sit this one out.
## šÆ Who This Night Is For
This event is for singles who:
* Want something more real than apps
* Enjoy good conversation and social energy
* Are open, curious, and emotionally mature
* Want a great Friday night ā regardless of what āhappensā
Come solo or with friends ā many do.
## š· The Vibe
Expect:
* A lively, welcoming bar atmosphere
* Great music and Friday-night energy
* Hosted introductions early, free flow later
* A crowd here for connection, not pressure
Think less ādating eventā ā more **the place to be the night before Valentineās**.
## ā
Why People Love KISMETRIX Events
* No swiping. No apps. Just real people.
* No timers or forced interactions.
* Thoughtful structure without rigidity.
* A great night out ā even if you come alone.
Many guests come ājust for a drinkā
ā¦and end up staying all night.
## š Book Now
[Official Website](https://www.kismetrix.com.au/all-events/?event=26193) OR [EventBrite](https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/feb-13th-kismetrix-valentines-eve-singles-night-konar-bar-ormond-tickets-1981392337820?aff=oddtdtcreator)
Valentineās Eve events **fill fast** ā and capacity is limited to keep the night social, not chaotic.
Door price (if available): $59. Online tickets recommended.
š **Secure your ticket early.**
If youāre single this Valentineās weekend, this is where you want to be.
**Refund Policy:**
Tickets are non-refundable. If you can no longer attend, youāre welcome to transfer your ticket to someone else in the same age group.
## **š Stay Connected with Kismetrix \| True Connection**
Love this event? We run a variety of experiences to help people meet and connect in meaningful ways.
š§ **social@kismetrix.com.au**
š **[www.kismetrix.com.au](http://www.kismetrix.com.au "http://www.kismetrix.com.au")**
š± Follow us on **[Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/kismetrix_/ "https://www.instagram.com/kismetrix_/"), [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61559826808523 "https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61559826808523") & [Eventbrite](https://www.eventbrite.com.au/o/kismetrix-singles-events-84848288353 "https://www.eventbrite.com.au/o/kismetrix-singles-events-84848288353")**
š \*\*Important Notice:\*\*By registering for this event\, you confirm that you have read and agree to Kismetrix \| True Connectionās[ Terms & Conditions](https://www.kismetrix.com.au/terms-and-conditions-2/ "https://www.kismetrix.com.au/terms-and-conditions-2/"),[ Privacy Policy](https://www.kismetrix.com.au/privacy-policy/ "https://www.kismetrix.com.au/privacy-policy/"),[ Disclaimer](https://www.kismetrix.com.au/disclaimer/ "https://www.kismetrix.com.au/disclaimer/") and [Code of Conduct](https://www.kismetrix.com.au/code-of-conduct/ "https://www.kismetrix.com.au/code-of-conduct/").Some events may be non-refundable as stated in their individual descriptions.š¤ Collaborations: **collabs@kismetrix.com.au**
Melbourne Python 2026 - A New Year of Coding and Connection.
**Melbourne Python's Meetup Feburary 2026!**
We hope you had a wonderful New Year. As we step into 2026, we look forward to strengthening collaboration and learning within the community. We are back with our regular Melbourne Python meetups, starting this February.
Join Melbourneās Python community for another night of learning, sharing, and connecting. Whether youāre just starting out or youāve been coding in Python for years, our monthly meetup is the perfect place to learn something new and connect with fellow developers. This group is for developers, data scientists, web programmers, and anyone passionate about Python.
Join us to for the meetup to start the 2026.
š
**When:**
5:30 PM, Thursday, February 12, 2026
š **Where:**
Judo Bank, Queen and Collins Building
Level 26/376-390 Collins St, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia
š [https://maps.app.goo.gl/A9JQTYGrMqGn8AzAA](https://maps.app.goo.gl/A9JQTYGrMqGn8AzAA)
**Note:**
The entrance is next to Rustica Cafe. Press level 26 when you arrive, and you'll find us there!
**Agenda for the Evening**
**5:30 - 6:00 PM**: Networking, pizza, and drinks šš¹
**6:00 - 6:15 PM**: Welcome and logistics š
**6:15 - 6:45 PM** - **Talk 1:** David Colls - Head of Data @ MYOB on An EV trip planner for Australia. In this session, David will explore the applicability of this approach to related problems in EV network and fleet planning
**6:45 - 7:00 PM**: Break ā Refresh your drinks and connect with someone new!
**7:00 - 7:30 PM** - **Talk 2:** Sakib Khan Inan - Graduate Research Fellow @ Deakin University on Time Series Data Analysis using Python.
**8:00 PM**: Event conclude
š **Special Thanks** š
A huge shoutout to our sponsors **Judo Bank** and **AWS** for making this meetup possible. Your support means the world to us!
**Interested in Speaking or Sponsoring?**
Weād love to hear from you! Email us at **melbournepython@gmail.com** or fill out our speaker interest form at https://forms.gle/S5T1SL4ULY5aogf47.
We can't wait to celebrate Python and the incredible Melbourne community with you. See you on February 12th! š
Docker Melb Crew #1 AI Engineering with Containers feat. Nvidia DGX Spark
Join the Docker Melb Crew for a deep dive into the next frontier of AI: **Agentic Systems**. We are moving beyond simple chatbots to discuss how to build, containerize, and deploy autonomous agents that can plan, reason, and act.
This session brings together Melbourneās engineers and architects to discuss the unique challenges of running multi-agent workflows. We will explore how containerization provides the isolation and scalability needed for complex agentic architectures.
**š Powered by: The DGX Spark** We will demonstrate what happens when Agentic AI meets extreme compute. See how agent workloads perform when accelerated by the **NVIDIA DGX Spark** (GB10 Blackwell / CUDA 13). We will look less at the metal and more at how this level of throughput unlocks real-time reasoning and massive parallel agent execution and prototyping.
**š
Agenda:**
* **Networking & Food:** Connect with the local AI and Cloud-Native community.
* **Topic 1:** **Prototyping Local AI Agents with Docker and DGX Spark** Learn how to use the Docker ecosystem to build private, powerful AI agents that live on your own hardware, by [Thiago Shimada Ramos](https://www.linkedin.com/in/thiago4go/), Docker Captain
* **Topic 2: First Steps with Containers** Short, fast-paced lightning talks from new Docker users sharing their first projects.
* **Containerised ELT Architecture**
* *Speaker:* [Rodrigues Lopes](https://www.linkedin.com/in/rodrigueslopesdataarchiect/), Data Architect (D2i Consulting)
* *What you will learn:* A real-world guide to Modern Data Architecture
* **Socializing:** Huge networking opportunity to discuss your AI stacks.
**š Logistics:**
* **Date:** Thursday, February 12, 2026
* **Location:** Microsoft Office, Melbourne
* **Time:** 5:30 PM (Doors Open)
**Who should attend?** AI Engineers, DevOps professionals, and System Architects looking to build and scale autonomous agent systems using modern container standards.
Information Security Events Near You
Connect with your local Information Security community
CBusData - Ok I Want to Get Data into Fabric - Now What?
I love my job and one of the main things I do is help customers get going with any of the data technologies at Microsoft. Right now there are a lot of my customers asking about Microsoft Fabric. It's hard to weave across all the shiny new options across the Fabric landscape, let alone figure out where it fits into your organization. In this session we'll focus on answering one question - how can I get data into Fabric? We'll talk through the "it depends" options and see some of the options in live demos.
Columbus HUG February
Want to be a speaker? submit your talk to our Call for Presenters!!!
https://sessionize.com/cbus-hug-2026/
TBD
**Important time note:** Please plan on arriving between 5:30 and 6:00 as the elevators lock after 6 and you'll need to message us and we'll need to come get you.
The building address is 4450 Bridge Park
The entrance is 6620 Mooney St, Suite 400
**Abstract**
TBD
**YouTube Link**
TBA
IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT UPCOMING TRANSITION | February 2026 Chapter Event
**Important note about the retirement of the OWASP Meetup platform**
Fellow OWASP Toronto members,
We are making an important announcement regarding an upcoming transition. The OWASP Foundation has announced that they will be retiring their Meetup Pro subscription effective January 31, 2026:
https://owasp.org/blog/2026/01/13/retiring-meetup.html
This means that our OWASP Toronto Meetup group may be removed in the coming days. We understand this may be short notice, so we want to make this announcement before we lose access.
You are an important part of our chapter community. Many attendees I have spoken to have discovered OWASP Toronto via Meetup. To continue engaging with the community while using a platform that enables discoverability, we will moving to the [Evenbrite](https://owasp-toronto-chapter.eventbrite.com/) for publishing our events. You can continue to follow us via our [Google Group mailing list](https://groups.google.com/a/owasp.org/g/toronto-chapter), our [Chapter page](https://owasp.org/www-chapter-toronto/), our [LinkedIn group](https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/owasp-toronto-chapter/), our [YouTube channel](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqmBl-u_4cOEiH3OXWE3sPg), our Slack channel ([#owasp-toronto-chapter](https://owasp.slack.com/archives/C075DRCB1PZ), does not require an OWASP membership), as well as on our new [Discord channel](https://discord.gg/eg3upJ6N).
Please see below for details of our February 12 event. Visit our [Eventbrite](https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/owasp-toronto-february-2026-tickets-1982057078076) page for more information!
\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*
**Dual Talk Event: Raising Cyber Awareness Through Electronic Word of Mouth \| When AI Becomes Application Logic: Securing Shadow AI**
Presentation #1: Raising Cybersecurity Awareness Through Electronic Word of Mouth: A Data-Driven Assessment
Awareness of the many cybersecurity threats, vulnerabilities, and solutions to mitigate these threats/vulnerabilities is instrumental in improving basic cybersecurity behaviours. A healthy body of knowledge has been devoted to exploring how to better increase awareness, in any given topic, among members of the general public which have explored the role of word of mouth (WOM) and electronic word of mouth (eWOM) in spreading awareness. In recent years, the rise of social media platforms as an alternative communication channel has created efforts to promote cybersecurity awareness online regarding the numerous cybersecurity threats. However, little research attention has been devoted to exploring eWOM communication on social media surrounding cybersecurity awareness. Moreover, no research to date has considered the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on these eWOM discussions related to cybersecurity awareness. To address these literature gaps, this research collected 227, 270 relevant tweets surrounding cybersecurity awareness from 2018 to 2022 conducting an exploratory analysis of the corpus using social network analyses, topic modelling and semantic similarity analysis. The results found topics rose in prominence and then dissipated as newer topics emerged while information was found to spread incredibly far despite a high degree of community forming, suggesting the online discourse is very open and evolving over time. These findings illustrate the potential of social media as an effective tool for raising cybersecurity awareness. The impact of COVID-19 observed an increase in the reach of information in addition to new specific topics emerging in the discourse, but the effects appear to be temporary.
Speaker: Dane Vanderkooi
Dane Vanderkooi is a fifth-year Doctoral Candidate in management science at TorontoMet University who specializes in researching cybersecurity and digital privacy behaviours. He completed his bachelor's of commerce at Uottawa and holds a master's in management science degree from Ryerson University. Dane has published his research in academic journals, conferences and industry reports. Dane has also presented his research at various conferences including HC2P, SERENE-RISC, HCII, CyberToronto, ASAC and SocialMedia+Society, AMCIS, and ICIS. Dane is certified in cybersecurity (CC) from ISC2 and has practical experience working in the field of cybersecurity with private industry, non-for-profits, and the public sector including the Canadian Armed Forces, Public Health and Safety Canada, Justice Canada, Innovation Science and Economic Development (ISED), Bell, BMO, Desjardins, Ritchie Bros and Achev.
\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*
Presentation #2: When AI Becomes Application Logic: Securing Shadow AI
AI is entering production faster than security teams can see it. From āsimpleā chatbot integrations to LLMs wired directly into business logic ā and agents running entire application flows ā organizations are accumulating Shadow AI: untracked, ungoverned, and often dangerously over-privileged.
This talk shows how AI quietly changes application behavior at runtime: expanding trust boundaries, introducing non-deterministic authorization paths, and creating blast radiuses that static inventories and policy checklists cannot capture.
Using real-world architectural patterns and runtime signals, weāll demonstrate how security teams can identify where AI is actually used, what it can access, and how attackers abuse AI-driven logic to exploit new classes of vulnerabilities.
Attendees will leave with a practical framework for securing AI-powered applications ā grounded in runtime behavior and evidence, not assumptions.
Speaker: Daniel Shechter
Daniel Shechter is the CEO and Co-Founder of Miggo, an Application Detection and Response platform. Shechter has an impressive background in both threat intelligence and within the security industry. Before founding Miggo he was leading cyber security teams in Israel's elite cyber intelligence division, Unit 8200. He later joined McKinsey, a strategy and management consulting company, where he provided guidance on acquisition, developing new business strategies and more. Shechter is an industry expert in security, incident detection and response, threat intelligence, and attack observability.
Data & Analytics Wednesday - Compensation Data
**People Analytics 101: Making Sense of Compensation Data**
Compensation data is one of the most widely used and widely misunderstood forms of people analytics.
The session will cover where compensation data comes from, including market pricing data, internal payroll data, and benchmarking sources, and how companies think about structuring and analyzing that information. We will explore how compensation data is leveraged to set salary ranges, manage internal equity, support hiring and retention, and align pay with business strategy. A portion of the session will address common data challenges and limitations, such as market noise, inconsistent job matching, and incomplete datasets, while keeping the primary focus on practical use rather than technical depth.
The session will also look ahead at where the space is going, including the growing impact of pay transparency laws, expanding pay equity requirements, and emerging regulations in the US and Europe that require organizations to report on gender and pay gaps. The goal is to give attendees a clear mental model for how compensation analytics works today and why getting it right is becoming increasingly critical.
(note: we are back at Rev1 this month!)
**About Our Speaker**
[Alex Moore](https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexscottmoore/) is the founder of [Moore Cooperative](https://moorecooperative.com/), where he advises organizations on compensation strategy, pay equity, and people analytics. His work focuses on helping organizations like the Ohio Supreme Court design, analyze, and communicate compensation systems that are data-informed, defensible, and aligned with organizational goals. Alex lives in Granville, Ohio and has three little kiddos.
More info at [cbusdaw.com](https://cbusdaw.com)
COhPy Monthly Meeting
**NEW LOCATION: Improving Office in Franklinton**
Physical location:
Improving Office
330 Rush Alley Suite #150
Columbus, OH 43215
Schedule:
* 6:00 p.m.: Socialize, eat, and drink. Improving will be providing pizza and beverages.
* 6:30 to 8:00 pm. Main meeting and presentation(s).
See the handy Parking Map - we recommend street parking.
[Street Parking Map](https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1u2A4fLNlxwLJn0KA_hKc8bnFlFHLvsHBDh-_8wzX_tk/edit?usp=sharing)
We meet on the last Monday of each Month. Presentations are given by members and friends of this group. If you would like to do a presentation (small or large) on a python topic, please contact centralohpython@gmail.com
Columbus Code & Coffee 83 @ Improving
Columbus Code & Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. People of all skill levels attend, and we love it that way. Many people (optionally) bring projects to work on, and many other people (optionally) socialize the entire time. It's entirely up to you!
**What to Expect at the Intro Circle**
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Near the beginning of the event (1:30 pm), we do a standup:
* Organizer announcements, updates, and logistics
Round 1 - (7 secs max):
* Your name
* What you're working on
* What you can help others with
Round 2:
* Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too.
Round 3:
* Job opportunities you're hiring for OR announce that you are looking for one. If none, that's cool.
After the introduction circle, everything is self-organized! Feel free to work alone, pair up, attend one of our workshops/presentations, or mingle!






























