IA14 The Government's Information Assurance Event

Titania is attending IA14, the ‘government’s flagship event on cyber security and information assurance’. Hosted at Park Plaza Westminster Bridge Hotel, London over 16 – 17 June 2014, the event was designed to provide a platform for discussion across government IT, public sector, industry and academia. The debates will focus on how the UK can become an international authority in information security.

Having recently attended information security conferences on both sides of the Atlantic, Titania’s delegate, Andy Williams will be able to share relevant insights with corporate and public sector representatives.

Source: cesg.gov.uk

Conference

IA14 comes shortly after the launch of the Cyber Essentials Scheme and it is likely to be a point of interest at the conference. Another recent initiative in UK’s cyber security policy that IA14 participants can expect to hear about is the CBEST framework, established by CREST (Council for Registered Ethical Security Testers) and the Bank of England. 

Combining government views with industry voices, the keynote speeches promise to reflect a balanced perspective of the cyber security landscape. Ciaran Martin and Iain Lobban of GCHQ, along with Rt. Hon. Francis Maude MP comment on behalf of the Cabinet Office. Bringing industry views are Kathy Warden of Northrop Grumman Information Systems, Symantec’s Samir Kapuria, while Lionel Barber, editor at the Financial Times, will be chairing a panel session.

Streams

Aside from the conference, delegates have the opportunity to observe four streams, organised as collective panels between industry, government and CESG.

The first stream illustrates the challenges of globalisation for the security industry, with issues from manufacturing, international trade and what constitutes an acceptable security promise from vendors. Also included are a comparative look at the cloud service providers, national and international context, and a talk from CESG on new cloud security principles.

The second stream addresses the problem of an ever-changing threat landscape for Government, industry and citizens, by looking at information sharing across governmental departments. Delegates will also have the chance to hear updates on the Defence Cyber Protection Partnership.

Stream three looks at the Secure by Default strategy and features Chemring Technology Solutions as a compelling case study on secure voice communications.

The fourth stream brings Andrew Gracie from the Bank of England and Ian Glover, CREST President, together to explain the corroborated efforts behind CBEST and its benefits to risk-management. Atkins debates the critical vulnerabilities faced by ICS (Industrial Control Systems). Finally, one of the most acute questions in cyber security today: “Why system users don’t simply follow the rules?” is discusses by Prof. Angela Sasse in the context of psychology and human behaviour. Dr. Emma Philpott of the Malvern Cyber Security Cluster concludes the session with a speech on the full leverage that SMEs can exercise in the supply chain.

Exhibition

The exhibition does not fall short of great industry names either. With exhibitors such as BAE Systems, Surevine, Blue Coat Systems, Blackthorn, Symantec, Nexor and Skyscape, delegates and public sector officials will have the opportunity to find the most up to date tools and solutions available in the industry.