International cooperation is needed more than ever as cyber attacker activity increased in the wake of the war in Ukraine.
Lindy Cameron, CEO of the UK’s National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) said: [Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office] FCDO and its allies are helping Ukrainians to solidify their cyber defense in the face of Russian hostility. ”
But in her opening remarks at the CYBERUK 2023 conference at ICC Belfast on 19 April 2023, she said there is still work to be done.
She noted that the risks were very high, not only for Ukrainian organizations, but also for British and other allied companies.
The Prime Minister of the Duchy of Lancaster, Oliver Dowden, also announced at CYBERUK 2023 that “an emerging Wagner-like cyber group is seeking to cause maximum damage to the UK’s critical national infrastructure.”
He confirmed that the NCSC has issued an official threat notice to operators to protect the country.
Read more: NCSC warns of devastating Russian attacks on critical infrastructure
“I don’t think we’re doing enough yet to protect our infrastructure from cyberthreats emerging from groups allied with Russia,” Cameron said.
“If there’s one thing that can be taken out of the conflict, it’s the importance of effective cyber resilience, and this needs to be done jointly with allies,” Cameron said.
Cameron said we need resilience to all threats, whether they come from nation states or cybercriminals.
“Today the average cost of a cyberattack in the UK is £1,000, with some large organizations as high as £5,000. It shows that,” said Cameron.
“Many of these incidents are the result of a lack of cyber hygiene rather than complex or sophisticated attack techniques,” she added.
She highlighted NCSC’s Cyber Essentials certification at this moment. Cameron added that organizations that have implemented this are 80% less likely to claim cyber insurance than organizations that don’t have Cyber Essentials.
CYBERUK’s conference program includes several international experts, including Kemba Walden, Active Cyber Director of the US Government, David Koh, Chief Executive Officer of the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore, and Victor Zhora, Chief of Cyber Security of Ukraine. A representative will appear.
The theme of this year’s conference is Ensuring an open and resilient digital futureCameron added that it “reflects UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s own ambition to focus collaboratively on the development of UK science and technology skills, in addition to a broader focus on critical technologies.” .
According to Cameron, the conference will address four key challenges that the NCSC and its allies will face regarding the future of cybersecurity. AI, advances in semiconductors, future quantum technology, and telecommunications.
