Overview

April 29

Unemployment claims skyrocketed over the past year, as millions of Americans lost their jobs during the pandemic. Sadly, as the number of claims rose, so did instances of unemployment insurance benefits fraud. These cases have resulted in billions of dollars lost. In California alone, officials reported more than $11 billion in improper payments in the first nine months of the pandemic. And these fraudulent claims aren’t just costly – they add complications and delays to already-overwhelmed state benefits systems that ultimately affect regular citizens who are out of work. Each state provides a critical lifeline for individuals and it's incredibly important that these systems perform well and detect fraudulent activity immediately.

How can states fight fraud? With better access to data. More comprehensive information on identity and behavior will help stem the tide of fraudulent claims.

Join us on April 29 at 11 PT / 2 ET for an in-depth discussion on how states can get a handle on waste, fraud and abuse in your unemployment insurance benefits program. Our panel of public officials and industry leaders will cover a range of topics, including:

· How unemployment insurance benefits fraud has impacted states during the pandemic
· How better access to data can help address gaps in state unemployment systems
· How your state can build on and mature its fraud strategy

Speakers

Joe Beck

Chief Operations & Information Security Officer, Division of Information Technology, New Jersey

Joe's role is Chief Operations and Information Security Officer responsible to oversee the daily functions of infrastructure support teams including Application Architecture and Administration, Telephony Services, End User Support and Database Management. As the CISO, Joe is responsible for technology governance and compliance to policy and best practice for the Department. Biggest charter for the security program is to align with the framework established in the Statewide Information Security Manual as mandated by the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness.

Juliana Vida

Chief Technical Advisor of Public Sector, Splunk Inc.

In this technology evangelist role she provides guidance, direction and thought leadership around Splunk’s data platform capabilities. She brings over 30 years of experience as an accomplished leader and IT professional. Prior to leaving government for industry, she retired after 24 years as a dual-warfare qualified Surface Warfare Officer and decorated Naval Aviator. Her top military awards include the Air Medal and Meritorious Service Medal. Her final years in uniform culminated in senior leadership roles in the Navy’s CIO organization, where she ultimately served as the Navy’s Deputy CIO in the Pentagon. Juliana is a ’94 US Naval Academy grad, making her one of the first women to be legally permitted to serve in a combat role, which she did on two Navy warships and four squadrons as a helicopter pilot. She deployed five times, including Operations ENDURING FREEDOM and IRAQI FREEDOM. Prior to joining Splunk, Juliana was a Vice President in Gartner Executive Programs, leading a team of executive partners supporting federal government Chief Information Officers (CIO) and IT senior leaders. Both before Splunk and now, she continues several volunteer activities, including being a Board Director for AFCEA International and a member of the AFCEA International Cyber Committee, Special Advisor to the Washington Cyber Roundtable, a mentor for Women in Technology, and advisor to Naval Academy Alumni Association’s Greater Washington Chapter. In her free time she enjoys cooking, fitness, and doing crosswords and word puzzles of all kinds. She was also the winner on two major televised game shows – Wheel of Fortune and The Weakest Link.

Dan Lohrmann

Senior Fellow, Center for Digital Government

Daniel J. Lohrmann is an internationally recognized cybersecurity leader, technologist, keynote speaker and author. He led Michigan government’s cybersecurity and technology infrastructure teams from May 2002 to August 2014, including as enterprise-wide Chief Security Officer (CSO), Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and Chief Information Security Officer (CISO). During his distinguished career, he has served both the public and private sectors in a variety of executive leadership capacities including advising senior leaders at the White House, National Governors Association (NGA) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Throughout his career he has received numerous national awards including: CSO of the Year, Public Official of the Year and Computerworld Premier 100 IT Leader.

Webinar

Fight Fraud with Data: How States Can Confront Unemployment Insurance (UI) Abuse