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On 29 September the Cybersecurity Forum 2011 was held in central London.. The forum was organised by an industry-government-academic grouping working in association with the Rustat Conferences, whose successful February 2011 conference covered the theme Cyber Security: An Assessment of the Threat to National, Economic and Individal Security.


The report for the Rustat Conference on Cyber Security is available here.

The revolution brought about by computer technology and the internet has delivered huge benefits and opportunities to society, but it also poses a threat as it may expose us – government, organisations and individuals – to digital attack. How real is this and how clear and present this danger? This meeting will set out to provide an informed judgement on the extent and nature of this threat to governments, commerce, national infrastructure and individuals.

We are now almost entirely dependent on internet technology and computer systems to manage the range of services and sectors in the modern world. From banking, stock markets, shipping and transport to healthcare, energy infrastructure, air-traffic-control and the military, a secure cyberspace - the so-called ‘fifth domain’ following land, sea, space and air - is essential to the smooth functioning of society.

There is an urgent need to discuss the nature of the threat of cyber-war, cyber-attack and cyber crime, and how to manage it. Could, for instance, a country or company’s infrastructure be destroyed as decisively by a cyber-attack as by an armed invasion by air and land? With the ‘Anonymous’ hacktivist army waging the WikiLeaks cyberwar ‘Operation Payback’ against the likes of Amazon, PayPal and Mastercard; Iran conceding the Stuxnet worm attacks on its nuclear infrastructure; and Google seeking the assistance of the US intelligence community following cases of alleged state-sponsored cyber-attacks and espionage oriented hacking, increasingly, some say, yes. If so, how are organisations and countries to manage this risk, defend themselves, and identify those responsible?

In addressing these concerns, another question arises: who actually owns or controls cyberspace? A scramble for cyberspace is underway between intelligence, military and civilian powers - Russia and China are effectively nationalising their online space with a huge walls and control systems, whereas elsewhere, against the background of the establishment of myriad laws and regulations, the legal mapping is chaotic and unharmonious.

This Rustat Cyber Security Conference discussed these important questions and set out to achieve a realistic assessment of the threat. The conference agenda included the following sessions:

Introduction and Overview

1. Cyber Security - A Global Perspective

2. Academic Research and its Response to the Threat – Scenarios

3. The Government and Military Perspective

4. Cyber Risks and Preparedness in the Private Sector

5. Governing Cyberspace - Law, International Treaties and Cooperation – Definitions - Deterrence

6. The Threat to Individuals and Freedom Online

The meeting brought together a group of leaading academic experts with decision makers from government,intelligence, finance, defence, technology, the law, the media, and the security services.

Speakers, chairs and participants included:

Sir Richard Dearlove KCMG OBE
Former Chief, Secret Intelligence Service MI6

Professor Jon Crowcroft
Marconi Professor of Communication Systems, Computer Laboratory, University of Cambridge

Sir David Omand GCB
Former Director GCHQ and Permanent Secretary, Home Office, Visiting Professor, Department of War Studies, King's College, London

Dr Steve Marsh
Deputy Director, Office of Cyber Security, Cabinet Office

Tim Dowse
Director of Intelligence and National Security, HM Foreign & Commonwealth Office

Paul Collacott
Director Cyber Policy, GCHQ

Dr Tristram Riley-Smith
Centre for Protection of National Infrastructure, CPNI

Dr Steven J. Murdoch
Computer Security Group, Computer Laboratory, University of Cambridge

Dr Rex Hughes
University of Cambridge

Jeff Bauer
Senior National Security Specialist, JAC Action Group, US NATO Joint Intelligence Operations Centre Europe

Dr Ian Brown
Internet Institute, Oxford University, author of OECD Cyber Security Report

Jon Moynihan OBE
Executive Chairman, PA Consulting Group


Lord Macdonald of Tradeston CBE PC
Senior Adviser, Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets, former Minister of Transport and Cabinet Office

Professor John Naughton
Professor of the Public Understanding of Technology, Open University, and Fellow, Wolfson College, Cambridge

Richard Abel
Managing Director, Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets, Europe

Alex van Someren
Amadeus Capital Partners, founder nCipher

Dr Tobias Feakin
Director National Security and Resilience, Royal United Services Institute

Kweilen Kimmelman
Corporate Strategy Manager, BAE Systems plc

Guillaume Tissot
Vice President, Product Marketing, i2 Ltd

Mark Ploszay
EMEA Defence and National Security Programme Manager, i2 Ltd

Dr Michael Rutter
Head of Energy Resilience, Department of Energy and Climate Change

Kerry Davies
Director, Information Protection and Business Resilience, KPMG

Rory Cellan-Jones
BBC Technology Correspondent

Craig Pollard
Principle Advisor, KPMG

Euros Evans
Chief Technology Officer, Airwave Solutions Ltd

Wg Cdr Tom Parkhouse
DBR DSAS Cyber Security Strategy & Engagement, Ministry of Defence

Mike Prettejohn
Director, Netcraft Ltd

This meeting was held subject to the Chatham House Rule.



Please contact the Rustat Conferences Office for more information.

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