Ireland’s first annual cybersecurity conference InfoSec 2016 announced

Ireland’s first annual cybersecurity conference, InfoSec 2016, is set to address the main areas of IT security threat and the security implications for businesses in Ireland. The conference takes place on November 15th 2016 in the RDS (Dublin) and is sponsored by technology expert, eir Business, a Cisco Gold Partner. As well as the opportunity to listen to specialists in the field, InfoSec 2016 will provide delegates with a chance to learn about the latest research, tools and technologies to reduce risk and protect against security breaches in organisations.

The threat landscape is continually shifting which makes identifying abnormal activity and detecting breaches a huge challenge for businesses but understanding the risks are essential. Against this backdrop, InfoSec 2016 will focus on Virtual Payments Security; Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Robots; Ransomware and The Internet of Things. It will also be examining the issue of Public Sector attacks – a timely addition considering some recent high profile attacks, including the one on the Garda Siochana’s internal network, which occurred in early August.

Amongst the key note speakers is WikiLeaks journalist Sarah Harrison who commented, “I am looking forward to joining INM [InfoSec 2016] in Dublin and discussing the important issues of privacy and security in the technology, which now governs all our lives.”

InfoSec 2016, InfoSec 2016 MC and panel contributor, and technology editor at INM is also eager to be involved and stated, “By any measure, the digital threats that businesses and organisations of all sizes face, are increasing. Many organisations don’t feel they’re getting on top of the situation. InfoSec 2016 will examine some of the critically important issues that threaten businesses and organisations in Ireland and abroad.”

Building on that sentiment, Bill Archer, Managing Director of eir Business and a lead sponsor of the event said, “With the rapid increase in cybercrimes, including Ransomware, information security is a mandatory requirement for every organisation and here in eir Business we work side-by-side with our customers to protect their business by helping them understand, detect and manage security threats.”

Security experts and responders will address topics including: With the Rise of the Robots, what do Irish companies need to guard against when buying new automated services, sales and manufacturing systems? What are the security implications of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in smart business systems?

Furthermore, in specific relation to Ransomware, with 23 per cent of Irish firms saying they have been hit, what’s next? The Internet of Things is now in businesses, smart cities and homes – what can vendors, retailers and distributors do to prevent mass attacks? Also, what do state bodies and public sector organisations need to do next in relation to attacks on public sector bodies?

Confirmed speakers include at InfoSec 2016 include:
· Journalist Sarah Harrison, WikiLeaks
· Detective Inspector Michael Gubbins, Computer Crime Investigations Unit, Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation
· Conor Flynn, Information Security Assurance Services (ISAS)
· UCD Centre of Cybersecurity and Cybercrime Investigation representative
· Rik Ferguson, Trend Micro
· James Kavanagh, Snapchat Superstar

“With the threat of cyber crime increasing at pace, we feel that InfoSec will provide insight and guidance to Irish businesses and professionals to ensure they are equipped to deal with this problem. We look forward to profiling and interviewing the experts working in this field in the run up to the event and reporting the latest findings and advice back to our audiences,” concluded group editor-in-chief at INM Stephen Rae.

InfoSec 2016 is an Independent News and Media event, please log onto www.independent.ie/infosec2016 for further information and tickets.