Our digital world is evolving. Our economy and society becomes more connected. However, greater connectivity implies more potential cybersecurity risks. How could governments and the industry get prepared in order to tackle the future cybersecurity challenges? How can we use emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), quantum computing, blockchain, to identify risks and build strong cybersecurity in the European Union? Going further, what is needed to develop innovative cybersecurity solutions and leverage all the current opportunities?

This session addressed the above mentioned questions.

Moderator: Jakub Boratynski, Head of Cybersecurity & Digital Privacy Policy Unit, DG CONNECT, European Commission 

Jakub Boratyński is Head of Unit 'Cybersecurity and Digital Privacy Policy' within the European Commission in Brussels (Directorate-General Communication Networks, Content and Technology). Among others involved in the negotiations of the recently adopted Network and Information Security (NIS) directive, the implementation of the EU cyber-security strategy's actions on resilience, industrial measures and Research and Innovation under H2020, and cooperation with the EU Agency for Network and Information Security (ENISA). He also directly contributed to the production of the new EU Cybersecurity Strategy.

Speakers:

• Paul Hofheinz – President and co-founder, The Lisbon Council

Title of the presentation: Societal security: steering towards a safer digital future

Paul Hofheinz is president and co-founder of the Lisbon Council, an independent, non-partisan think tank and research centre based in Brussels, Belgium. It was founded in 2003. At the Lisbon Council, Mr. Hofheinz manages the association on a daily basis and is responsible for strategic oversight, including growth, publishing and development. He also maintains a personal research programme, writing, publishing and speaking on topics as diverse as artificial intelligence, the future of work, innovation, startups, the knowledge-economy, human capital, growth-company finance, economic reform and European politics. He frequently appears on the BBC, CNBC and Bloomberg, and has written for or been quoted in more than four dozen leading newspapers and academic journals.

• Fredrik Bynander, PhD, Director, Center for Societal Security

Title of the presentation: Protecting society from hybrid threats

Fredrik Bynander is an Associate Professor of Political Science and Director for the Centre for Societal Security. In 2009-2011 Fredrik was a Special adviser at the Prime Minister's Office Secretariat for Crisis Coordination. In 2011-2012 he was its head of strategic planning. Fredrik is a member of the Royal Academy of War Sciences, and the Swedish Society for International Affairs.

• Yordanka Ivanova, PhD, Sofia University ”St.Kliment Ohridski”

Title of the presentation: Challenges to privacy and other fundamental rights in the Big data and algorithmic world

Yordanka Ivanova is an acting attorney-at-law in Bulgaria and a PhD candidate in Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”, writing a thesis on GDPR and its application in the context of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence. She has done an LLM in EU Law in Leiden University (Netherlands) and used to work before as a policy officer in the European Commission.

• Roberto G. Cascella, Senior Policy Manager, European Cyber Security Organisation (ECSO)

Title of the presentation: Moving towards a trustworthy and resilient European cyber security ecosystem 

Roberto Cascella is Senior Policy Manager at the European Cyber Security Organisation (ECSO), the contractual counterpart to the European Commission for the implementation of the cybersecurity cPPP. For the ECSO Secretariat, Roberto coordinates the activities of working groups looking at certification related aspects and defining the Strategic Research Innovation Agenda.

Before joining ECSO, he worked as Innovation and Research Project Manager and Research Scientist contributing to several EU projects. Roberto holds a Ph.D. (2007) in ICT from University of Trento, an M.Sc. in Telecommunication engineering from Politecnico di Torino and KTH Stockholm (2003).