A Story of Cybersecurity and IP Theft

Part B – Backstory  

Written and produced by A/Prof Atif Ahmad and A/Prof Sean Maynard from the University of Melbourne, A Story of Cybersecurity and IP Theft is a three-part video series about a fictitious firm that suffers a catastrophic incident of Intellectual Property (IP) theft. Protecting IP is both complex and expensive as it involves understanding and developing security mechanisms for the people, process, and technology dimensions of organisations. The case provokes conflict, requires high-stakes decisions to be made, and is extremely relevant to the sustainability of private enterprise (the problem and plot that was drawn from news stories and relevant legal indictments). The authors crafted the plot, narrative, characterisation, dilemmas and conflict to focus on the three key areas of cybersecurity, risk management, planning and strategy, and policy and governance. Delivery of a case study using video especially where the content is constructed to invite students to discuss observed practices is particularly effective. Realistic problem-solving using colourful graphics and videos in particular are both highly engaging and help students to bridge the gap between theory and practice as well. Video and graphics enhanced case studies make the problem more situated, which allows for greater realism, emotional complexity and higher levels of engagement especially for younger generations of learners.