Cybersecurity, Liability & Business Preparedness

Tuesday, October 13, 2026
1:00 p.m. ET

Cybersecurity isn’t simply an IT issue. A cyber incident can quickly become a legal, financial and operational issue — raising questions about everything from regulatory obligations and liability to insurance coverage, vendor relationships and incident response.

Join McDonald Hopkins Counsel Kate Furstenau and SensCy Chief Strategy Officer David Behen for a practical Cybersecurity Awareness Month discussion that brings together the legal and cybersecurity perspectives every business should consider — before an incident puts them to the test.

Together, they’ll tackle four important questions:

• Where could cyber risk enter our business? Learn how vendors, suppliers and other third parties can introduce risk, including some of the ways that exposure can be difficult to see.
• What are we responsible for? Understand the regulatory and legal obligations that may apply to your organization, the data you’re responsible for protecting and what happens when a third party is involved.
• If an incident happened tomorrow, would we know what to do? Learn the immediate cybersecurity and legal considerations following an incident — and why having the right people, plan and resources in place beforehand matters.
• Have we adequately protected the business? Explore practical steps involving cyber insurance, vendor contracts, incident response planning and tabletop exercises that can help your organization prepare before something happens.

You’ll leave with a clearer understanding of your organization’s cyber risk, legal responsibilities and readiness — and practical steps you can take now to better prepare your business.

Kate Furstenau, Counsel, McDonald Hopkins

Kate is Counsel in the Litigation Department at McDonald Hopkins and part of the firm’s national Data Privacy and Cybersecurity team. She has experience advising and coaching a variety of businesses, such as health systems, professional service firms, and educational institutions, on data privacy and cybersecurity matters, including responding to government inquiries and investigations, and obligations with respect to state data privacy laws, HIPAA, GLBA, FERPA and state insurance departments. Additionally, Kate has experience assisting clients with data privacy and cybersecurity litigation and cybersecurity class actions.

David Behen, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer, SensCy

David Behen is Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of SensCy, with more than 20 years of executive leadership experience across the public and private sectors. A five-time CIO 100 honoree, he previously served as Vice President and CIO of La-Z-Boy, leading its global IT transformation and cybersecurity program. Before that, Behen spent more than six years in Governor Rick Snyder’s cabinet as CIO for the State of Michigan and Director of the Department of Technology, Management and Budget, overseeing 2,800 employees and a $1.4 billion annual budget. He is also an entrepreneur, frequent keynote speaker and recognized expert in cybersecurity, technology and leadership.