Cyberthreat 2018 aimed at UK cyber security techies

Cyberthreat 2018 is aimed at growing the UK’s network of cyber defenders, filling a key gap in the UK cyber security conference calendar and bridging the public-private sector divide

Cyberthreat 2018

Cyberthreat 2018

Although the number of UK-based cyber-security related events has grown rapidly in the past few years, none was designed to showcase UK talent, skills and technologies. But that is set to change in 2018.

Seeking to fill the gap, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) is partnering with the Sans Institute to host Cyberthreat 2018 at the QEII Conference Centre in London from 27 to 28 February.

“This is part of delivering on our commitment to encourage and foster a better sharing of an understanding of the cyber threat and how best to counter it,” said Paul Chichester, director of operations at the NCSC.

“It is not about fixing something that is wrong, but about doing something that we should, which will improve the cyber security of the UK through this community getting together to share knowledge and best practice in defending  networks and systems,” he told Computer Weekly.

The event has been specifically designed for techies working in cyber security consultancy, intelligence or defence in an attempt to connect and consolidate this community in the UK, with a focus on understanding cyber adversaries and the ways they seek to do harm at a technical level.

“The UK still has work to do in growing its community of network defenders made up of those people who are trying to defend their networks and stop cyber attacks,” said Chichester.

“Despite the large number of cyber security related conferences in the UK, there are not many for those involved in the more technical elements, and we wanted enable this community to access the top technical cyber security speakers without having to go to the US,” he said.

Partnership

The NCSC is partnering with the Sans Institute, which has a successful track record in running cyber threat intelligence conferences in the US that typically feature key technical speakers.

“We were keen to bring something similar to the UK, not only to give local technicians access to top speakers, but also to help create a sense of community through interactive workshops and activities,” said Chichester.

“Another key aim of Cyberthreat 2018 is to further foster collaboration between the public and private sectors around analysing attacks, to come together to share knowledge, expertise and best practices to ultimately reduce the harm to the UK,” he said.

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