Brenna Vaz, a graduate student in the Applied Data Analytics program, has been invited to present at the William & Mary 17th Annual Graduate Research Symposium on March 16, 2018.
Vaz’s presentation is titled "Data breaches in biopharmaceuticals: Information at stake and how to protect it".
She will receive financial support from the Cratis D. Williams School of Graduate Studies to attend the conference and is working with CIS professor Dr. Dawn Medlin as her faculty advisor.
About Brenna Vaz
Vaz is a second semester graduate student at Appalachian. She is working toward her Master of Science in Applied Data Analytics. She completed her undergraduate degree at the University of South Carolina with a Bachelor of Science in Tourism Management.
Vaz was introduced to the world of big data and data analytics through her undergraduate program. Big data plays a large role in the tourism industry, in which she was immersed at the time. As her undergraduate career progressed, she became increasingly interested in technology, security and data analytics and engaged in many analytics-based research projects. Eventually she sought to pursue her Master’s level degree in the data analytics field. She currently works as a graduate assistant in the college.
Research Abstract
A biopharmaceutical is a pharmaceutical drug product originating from a biological source, most commonly blood or plasma. International biopharmaceutical company Biotest examines blood types for various factors when developing their disease-fighting products. Of course, there are many elements that go into blood and plasma typing before bioproducts are developed. Over the last decade, biopharmaceutical companies have introduced data-recording technologies into their research and administration of drug products. Data recording technologies foster an increasing need for data analytics and data security. Data is used to store everything from the blood donor’s medical information to confidential company information and international cyber security. A cyber attack resulting in a data breach can mean things such as leaked Social Security numbers of Biotest staff and donors, medical information from blood and plasma donors, contact information of stakeholders involved, medical identity theft, and corporate and personal financial loss, just to name a few. An abundance of data does immense good for biopharmaceutical companies, but because it is such valuable, profitable information, it is also extremely subject to data breaches and cyber attacks. The purpose of this research is to examine the importance of data analytics and data security in such a lucrative industry as biopharmaceuticals. The goal is to use Biotest as a model to shed light on risks that data breaches have on the biopharmaceutical industry and inform these types of companies on what measures to take to prevent breaches and avoid devastating damage.
