Current challenges and new results of cyber security research will form the programme of the European Conference on Security Research in Cyberspace. In addition to topics such as cybercrime, safe artificial intelligence, protection of critical infrastructures of the state and education, and prevention in cyber security, it will offer a practical demonstration of the latest laboratory equipment. Held on the occasion of the Czech Presidency of the EU by Masaryk University, the Technical University in Brno and the Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic, the international conference will take place from 12 to 14 September 2022.

“Cybersecurity is a complex phenomenon that requires close cooperation between security forces and top research universities at state level,” explained Radim Polčák, Masaryk University's Vice-Rector for Development, Legislation and Information Technology. “Our university has been at the forefront of the Czech cyber security system, and the results of our research in various fields of informatics, law, social sciences and humanities still contribute to keeping us at the forefront of this field in Europe.”

Over the course of three days, the conference will bring together scientists and representatives of security forces, such as the Czech Police and the Security Information Service, and other state institutions and commercial companies. The conference will focus on topics such as secure artificial intelligence, modern cryptography, the creation of an international quantum network and image processing. It will also discuss cybersecurity education, speech and cybercrime mining, and network forensic analysis.

Bart Preneel, a professor at the prestigious University of Leuven, Belgium, and the head of the renowned research group COSIC, will be the keynote speaker at the conference. Professor Preneel has long been involved in information security, cryptography and privacy. In the past, he also served as president of the International Association for Cryptological Research. He is the author of more than 400 scientific publications and 5 patents.

Another main topic will be education and prevention in cybersecurity. This will include discussion of cyber arenas for skills training, awareness-raising in the field of quantum threats, and vocational training. Delegates will have the opportunity to visit modern laboratories recently opened to researchers at BUT. “With the advent of new technologies and the current international situation, we cannot expect a decrease in the number of cyber-attacks,” said Jan Hajný, a leading expert on cryptography and cyber security at the Brno University of Technology. “On the contrary, we need to prepare for more frequent and complex attacks, which may have stronger effects on our daily lives and the running of the state. It is therefore important that we not only talk about the future of technology and cyber security, but that we are adequately prepared for such scenarios. This will also be one of the topics of the Brno conference.”

The conference will also present the concept behind the National Research and Development Plan in the field of cybersecurity, as well as focusing on new opportunities to support cybersecurity research, both at national (Czech) and European level, especially in terms of technological trends, application of results in practice (opportunities and limits in transmitting results) and tools to support security programmes at national level. “Within the framework of the Czech presidency of the Council of the European Union, the conference provides a unique opportunity to present cyber security research as a key part of the security research system in the Czech Republic,” said Petr Novák, director of the Department of Security Research and Police Education of the Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic.

The three-day event will take place at several faculties of Masaryk University and the Brno University of Technology. The conference is held under the auspices of the city of Brno. Detailed information, including the registration form, is available at www.eu-secres.eu. Registration for the conference is mandatory, but there is no registration fee.

The event is organized within the framework of the Czech presidency of the Council of the EU and is financed from projects VJ01030001, VJ01030002, VJ01030004 and VJ01030007 of the Ministry of the Interior Strategic Support for Security Research Development 2019-2025 (IMPAKT 1).