Katorah Williams, M.S., ABD
I am a PhD candidate who received my Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and Psychology from Temple University and a Master of Science in Criminal Justice from West Chester University of Pennsylvania. My Master’s thesis used a critical lens to explore media depictions of offenders and victims across prominent crime-based television shows. Prior to returning to Temple, I completed two years in Immaculata University’s Doctorate of Clinical Psychology program, with a focus on trauma, personality disorders and deceptive behavior.
For the last 5 years, I have worked as a research assistant for Dr. Aunshul Rege in the C.A.R.E Lab, conducting research on social engineering, the use experiential learning in cybersecurity education, and adversarial decision making. Currently, I am working with Dr. Katya Le Blanc and Timothy McJunkin of Idaho National Labs on CyOTE: Cybersecurity for the Operational Technology Environment, where I am exploring how energy vendors and providers manage cybersecurity for their customers. So far, I have published seven papers on these topics and presented at numerous conferences, both domestic (ASC, ACJS, IEEE- ISEC) and international (IEEE-CSC).
Broadly, my research interests include privacy and surveillance, cybersecurity, social engineering, critical criminology with a focus on Black feminist theories, social inequality, and “street smarts.” My dissertation explores the decision-making process related to engagement in lateral surveillance on social media.