The necessity to intensify cooperation on cybersecurity at all levels – governmental, entrepreneurial, and institutional – is one of the key takeaways of the CYBERSEC 2016 conference that has just concluded in Krakow. The European Cybersecurity Forum is one of the top events of this kind in Europe. Conclusions developed throughout CYBERSEC will be subsequently presented in the form of concrete recommendations.
Cooperation was definitely the buzzword of this year’s edition of CYBERSEC. “In the recently announced project on the public-private partnership, the European Commission promotes European cooperation on cybersecurity. This is a very important initiative that Polish companies simply cannot miss out on. In addition, the enforcement of the NIS Directive on network and information security that assumes multilateral cooperation and the implementation of instruments heightening the level of cybersecurity should help approach public-private cooperation on cybersecurity in a more systemic fashion,” concluded Joanna Świątkowska, CYBERSEC Programme Director and Senior Research Fellow of the Kosciuszko Institute.
However, Estonian MEP, Tunne Kelam, argues that there are still countries that do not seem to fully grasp the concept of cybersecurity cooperation, particularly in the military domain. “We are making progress at the level of declaration, which is good, but we are still struggling with implementation,” he said.
All CYBERSEC participants have stressed that cooperation should primarily involve the exchange of experiences and knowledge about the most up-to-date solutions. This is the only viable way to effectively combat cybercrime and cyberterrorism – also one that targets entire nations. “Military and state administration must be one step ahead of the groups that threaten entire states. At the same time, we need to ensure that military operations are adequately secured, so they can continue to effectively prevent any “cyber bullet” from striking and shutting down all electronic devices within its reach,” emphasised Nigel Inkster, a former MI6 Director of Operations and Intelligence. Jamie Shea, NATO Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Emerging Security Challenges expressed similar views. He said: “We need to work together to prepare scenarios for rehearsals of possible attacks we may face in the future. Mutual trust is absolutely critical in this case and we must continue making efforts to build it. We need to remember that we can be attacked any time from any place in the world – this is exactly the challenge we are currently facing.”
Convening more than 700 participants from over 20 countries, CYBERSEC 2016 turned out to be a record-setting edition. For the second time, CYBERSEC turned all eyes to the capital of Małopolska, making it a centre of international debate on cybersecurity. During two days of meetings, the participants were discussing a number of things among which the prominence was given to the issue of establishing a regional cybersecurity system for Central and Eastern Europe. Moreover, cyber-defence capabilities of NATO member states, the fight against cyberterrorism by means of cyber tools, and an increasing shortage of cyber professionals were highlighted as top priorities. The recommendations developed during CYBERSEC will undoubtedly enhance cybersecurity levels of all economy sectors, states and Europe as a whole. They will also help strengthen cyber-defence cooperation between the V4 countries, Baltic States, and other countries in the CEE region.
CYBERSEC Strategic Partners: Deloitte, IBM, Cisco, Microsoft, PKO Bank Polski, PGZ Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa, PZU, T-Mobile. Main Partners of the conference: PGNiG, Exatel, Tauron, Comarch, Thales, and PKP Cargo. The Kosciuszko Institute is the official organiser of the event.
Watch the first day of the conference:
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Krakow will host the 2nd European Cybersecurity Forum – CYBERSEC, on 26th and 27th September
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