Steve Beaty spent 10 years in a successful and lucrative career in industry working for the likes of Hewlett-Packard, Cray Computer Corp. and NCR Corp. when he decided it was time for a change. “I wasn’t enjoying it any more,” he recalls. So, remembering how well he liked the teaching he did while working on his Ph.D. at Colorado State University, Beaty decided to return to academia.

Now, after six years at Metro State as an associate professor in the Mathematical and Computer Sciences Department, Beaty has established himself as an expert in computer and network security. During the recent MS Blaster and Sobig viruses, which shut down computer systems throughout the world, Beaty was called on by journalists to explain the situation, appearing on channels 2, 7, 9 and 31, KOA and KBCO radio.

Viruses and worms are the price we pay for convenience, maintains Beaty. And as someone who typically is running four different desktop computers at once, he should know. “As we become more and more interconnected, we put ourselves more at risk. It’s a double-edged sword. It’s great to be able to send e-mail across the world, but there is a risk involved,” Beaty says.

One line of defense against viruses is firewalls, a barrier designed to keep away viruses and worms. In his Firewalls class, Beaty teaches students first how to break into a system and then how to create systems that are resistant to hackers. “The only way to combat this problem is through knowledge. Teaching students how to break in makes them more aware of what’s needed to protect a network.”

Beaty thoroughly enjoys teaching and has found that Metro students are serious about learning the material. “I also value the flexibility academia affords,” he adds. “I can explore those topics in computing that interest me; in industry there is precious little opportunity for this exploration, as a business has to make profits to remain a business.”

Away from academia, Beaty spends time with his daughters, Laurel and Tessa.