IT Security

Infosec speakers

by Mark Rowe

Dame Stella Rimington, Former Director General of MI5, spoke at the start of Infosecurity Europe, touching on the recent London Bridge and Manchester Arena terrorist attacks, the ‘incredibly difficult’ challenges intelligence agencies are facing and the “calls for change” in the way the UK’s Security Services are run.

Dame Stella Rimington reflected on her time in the Security Service and her work in counter-subversion, counter-espionage and counter-terrorism. She discussed the challenges and threats the security services are now facing compared to her time at the helm, demonstrating how the enemy has evolved over the years and how security and intelligence strategies have had to adapt to combat them. She also covered how the role of women in the security services has transformed, how complex technology and communications have changed the game, and how a culture of blame can have a negative impact at times of crisis.

Also on day one, Tuesday, June 6 on the Keynote Stage, speakers included Infosecurity Hall of Fame Alumnus, Rik Ferguson, Special Advisor, at the EU’s policing agency Europol EC3; James Lyne, Global Head of Security Research at software security product company Sophos; and Peter Wood, CEO at ethical hacking firm First Base, who explored themes such as Getting to Know the Cyber Adversary and Countering Ransomware – When Should you Pay the Ransom?

On the exhibition floor, RadarServices conducted live hackings of a production plant while Pen Test Partners sought to hack “everything bar the kitchen sink”. New launches from exhibitors at London Olympia included the IISP’s introduction of a New Skills Framework, Infradata’s new nuQulus platform and Hypersocket Software’s new Hypersocket Prime application.

On day two of the three-day show, broadcaster Jeremy Paxman delivered a keynote speech ‘Governments, Businesses and Other Scoundrels: Why Trust Anyone?’. A Women in Cybersecurity Networking Event featured a talk by Kate Russell, BBC technology journalist, followed by a panel session entitled How to Sell your Professional Self in a Male Dominated Industry, at the next door Olympia Conference Centre.

With the EU GDPR due in May 2018, Peter Brown, Senior Technology Officer at the UK data protection watchdog the ICO was covering the measures you should be taking to be compliant, before a panel discussion on Privacy, Security and EU GDPR: Practitioners’ Guide to Compliance, with speakers from Costa Coffee, HSBC and the ICO.

On the third and final day Infosecurity Europe, at Olympia, on Hammersmith Road, west London, runs from 9.30am to 4pm. Visit http://www.infosecurityeurope.com/. The 2018 event runs from June 5 to 7 at the same venue.

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