It is hard to believe that it was only 9 months ago that I was writing blogs looking forward to our inaugural CyberUK In Practice conference.
The goal we set ourselves then was to create a different sort of cyber security event. Personally, I was fed up of going to cyber security conferences where gloomy looking chaps in dreary suits lectured audiences about how terrible the threat landscape looks. How insider threats have doomed us all, and how advanced cyber ninja monkeys will leap small buildings and compromise our networks with a single glance. It was time to do something different!
CyberUK In Practice 2016 was different – very different – and successfully so. We worked hard to find speakers attendees might not have heard from before, who could speak about their personal experiences working in cyber security and technology. We looked for inspiring talks about how you can make more informed decisions about security, and how this makes a difference to organisations and individuals. We looked for speakers who could talk about the experiences they’d had, the good bits and the bad bits, and what we could all learn from them.
And now it’s time to do it again!
We’ve been working hard for the last few months to put together CyberUK In Practice 2017, building on what worked well last year. And now, with the conference just over 3 weeks away, I want to tell you a bit more about the exciting two days we’ve got lined up.
As you’ll hopefully have seen from the agenda, 23 hours of stream sessions are split across the two days. There’s also a wide range of plenary keynotes, masterclasses, sponsored seminars, and panel sessions, with plenty of time for discussions and networking.
We’re also reprising our ‘Spotlight Stage’ talks in the exhibition hall, with one or two surprises along the way.
There are two key themes for this year’s CyberUK In Practice. The first is our Active Cyber Defence programme, and a wide range of speakers will explain more about what it is, how it’s already working, and how you can benefit from it.
The second theme (and something that I’m personally really looking forward to) is our focus on user-centric security; putting people at the heart of cyber security when we’re designing technology, setting out processes, and implementing security policy. Our password guidance was just the start of what we think is a very different, and very important, new way of thinking about cyber security. We’ve got a whole stream dedicated to this topic, but it will come up time and again across the event.
Returning to the streams, this year they are:
- Managing the Threat: Developing a deeper understanding of the threat landscape and approaches to managing it and handling incidents effectively.
- People are the Strongest Link: How we can better support users to work effectively and securely.
- Proactive Defence: A technical exploration of Active Cyber Defence measures, including how innovative approaches to security are increasing business utility.
- Securing Agile Delivery: How security and resilience can be built into systems using agile approaches (delivered in partnership with GDS)
- Cyber Insights: Exciting cyber security developments in the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the CyberFirst initiative, and the NCA’s Prevent programme.
Ian M and myself will be writing some more blogs about these streams, and the other things you can expect to see at CyberUK In Practice, in the next few weeks.
We look forward to seeing you all in Liverpool in mid-March.
Jon L
Technical Director for Assurance
Source: National Cyber Security Centre
