Wednesday, July 3, 2019

Getting Ready for Tech Talks at the Annual Meeting

The Municipal Association and its technology partner VC3 are bringing Tech Talks — short sessions to cover critical IT topics — throughout the Annual Meeting in Greenville later this month. 

Many topics will be covered, with the full list available here. Because technology is becoming a pivotal role in our lives, there are several available resources explaining why cities and towns should take an interest in the session topics. Here are some of the Tech Talk sessions paired with some advance reading/listening that can help attendees prepare for them. 
  • Cybersecurity Checklist: How Do You Rate? – This session will take a look at some key cybersecurity needs like email encryption and cyber liability insurance. Cybersecurity was the subject of a recent City Quick Connect podcast with Krystal Daily, information technology director for the Municipal Association. In that podcast, Krystal also dug into the issue of ransomware attacks on municipalities, which will be the threat discussed in the Tech Talk session Be Prepared With a Cybersecurity Incident Response Plan
  • Text Message Archiving Basics – The need for archiving solutions for text messages on city devices comes about because such texts are subject to the SC Freedom of Information Act. Learn more about the challenges of digital document retention in the Uptown article “Keeping Digital Public Records on the Record.” 
  • Crafting a Social Media Policy – Social media has opened up worlds of opportunities for cities in terms of resident and visitor engagement and even with things like police work, since law enforcement agencies can use social media to improve transparency and working relationships with the public. Even so, city staff need to be careful to use social media appropriately and in accordance with planned rules, and that’s where social media policies come in.