Next week’s fourth annual Irish cybercrime conference will reveal the latest findings into IT security threats facing Irish businesses.
At last year’s event, organisers IRISSCERT, the non-profit computer emergency response team, revealed its members had been on the receiving end of 441 security incidents during 2011. Of this number, 408 incidents – 92pc of the total – involved websites in Ireland being compromised by criminals to host phishing sites to target unsuspecting users in other countries.
With most of the attacks attributed to financially motivated organised crime gangs, it will be interesting to see what the trends have been in 2012.
Taking place next Thursday, 22 November, the conference assembles a host of internationally recognised speakers in the field of information security and cybercrime. The keynote address will be from longtime internet and firewall expert Marcus J Ranum, who will speak about cyberwar in the era of Stuxnet – believed by many to be the world’s first cyberweapon.
Speakers at the IRISSCERT cybercrime conference
The event will start with a presentation from ENISA, the European Network and Information Security Agency, about fostering greater collaboration between CERTs around Europe.
Neira Jones from Barclaycard will outline the role of social media for incident response, while Verizon’s Nicolas Villatte will discuss security and risk management lessons arising from the company’s 2012 Data Breach Investigations Report.
The Verizon document is considered one of the most reliable sources of internet security findings and this year’s edition was the first to feature direct input from Irish organisations.
Other speakers lined up for the conference include Rik Ferguson, director of Trend Micro’s EMEA Security Research team.
In the light of recent high-profile incidents of cyberbullying, another speaker to look out for is Michael Moran of Interpol, who will talk about tackling online crimes against children.
The event is also worth attending for anyone interested in getting a job in the IT security sector, which many observers say is undergoing a skills shortage. Some of the conference sponsors, such as Amazon, which is exhibiting on the day, will be actively recruiting for these roles.
As always, the conference will also include the Hackeire all-day hacking contest.
Places are still available and tickets cost €25 for the day-long conference. For more information and registration details, visit the IRISSCERT website.
