By Angel Durr, Ph.D.
For as long as I can remember I have been heavily drawn to and engaged in the arts. Whether it was musical theater, acting, singing, modeling, dancing, or even creating original art pieces, I have remained an artist for most of my life. Art has always been my first love, but I also consider myself to be a dedicated strategic technologist who is always looking for ways to drive both my passions forward simultaneously in order to seek out creative solutions to technical issues.
Throughout my career, I have had a variety of experiences that have shaped me into the person I am today, including being an autistic entrepreneur, creative, PhD, and research scientist. My broad background and knowledge led me to be asked to participate in my first Tedx experience this year. This talk, entitled “How Artificial Intelligence and Social Engineering Can Fight Cyber Crime,” detailed my experience and my efforts to end cyber crime.
As someone who has been intimately affected by cyber crime, I know how important it is to take a proactive stance against this type of crime. In fact, my own Autistic and Black mother was an early-stage cyber criminal herself. However, this same behavior led to the unfortunate murder of my mother last April, and I am honoring her memory by telling her story as well as sharing my expertise in order to push the narrative of cyber crime forward.
While there is a great deal of effort being driven around the financial impact of cyber crime globally, It has been shocking to see first hand just how little attention has gone to the human toll of cyber crime. In particular, those who are disabled, elderly, women, poor, and people of color should be protected in online interactions. By discussing my experiences with cyber crime, how I’m taking steps to prevent it, and how you can help, I hope to help change the world for the better and make it a safer place.
If you’d like to learn more about my work or connect with me, please feel free to reach out to me directly. Thank you for taking the time to read this and for your support.
Dr Angel Durr is a Ph.D & AI Scientist, Entrepreneur, Speaker, Creative, Professor & Disability Advocate. She is a board member for The Art of Autism nonprofit.
