When the hackers responsible for ransomware, malware, and other plagues facing our on line world are caught, chances are good that the technology and expertise used to track them down will have been developed at Port San Antonio, which is being called 'San Antonio's Digital Fortress,' News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
The Port, which stands on the site of the former Kelly Air Force Base, Thursday night announced plans by IPSecure, a San Antonio based startup, to dramatically expand its operations, with the addition of 50 new cybersecurity experts.
The Port's Paco Felici says the work underway in San Antoio is reshaping the world.
"We have one of the largest concentrations of cybersecurity expertise here in our city," he said. "Port San Antonio has seen phenomenal growth, in fact we have over 1,000 cyber security experts today."
And he says that number is growing, as Port San Antonio works on an addition that will open the way to 3,000 more people working in this growing and very important field.
"We are right now working on a new project, an extension of our campus, we are adding several facilities that are going to be specifically to house both military and private sector cybersecurity."
The city's amazing boom in cybersecurity jobs stems from the Pentagon's decision to locate the 24th Air Force at Lackland Air Force, bringing military computer and military security experts to the city, many of whom decided to stay and grow businesses in the private sector.
But before that, officials point to USAA and AT&T's early adoption of fiber communications and the high level infrastructure needed to establish operations of this scope.
Jeff Medina, Director of Cyber Strategy and Integration at IPSecure, says the firms' expansion will allow it to monitor clients' networks and take counter measures against attempted cyberattacks.
"By physically growing that environment and recruiting top talent, it allows us to effectively defend our clients' assets," he said. "It also provides us a highly secure environment in which those bright minds can collaborate as they create the next generation of cyber defenses."
He says people around the world are demanding security not just for computer networks, but for smart phones, bank accounts, medical records, and other devices and data.
Felici says the recet emergence of the WannyCry and Petya ransom ware attacks show the importance of computer security today and its ongoing importance in the future.