Conference Summary: GIC@CeBIT 2016
European Cyber Security Conference at CeBIT 2016

Organized by the Global Industry Club GIC, March 14, 2016, Hannover, Germany

„Cyber Security is a societal debate“ or „The glass is always half full…“

The multi-facets of cyber security became obvious during the first day of CeBIT 2016 in Hannover, Germany during the well attended European Cyber Security Conference, organized by the Global Industry Club. The participants could listen to five high-profile keynote presentations and contribute during four parallel workshops. A lively podium finalized the event. Gabriele Rittinghaus, the event initiator, was very satisfied with the results: “Being present on the first day of CeBIT with such an important topic is a huge opportunity and obligation at the same time.”

• Udo Helmbrecht of the European Union Agency for Network and Information Security ENISA explained the regulatory framework, which are in preparation throughout the European Union. Similar to other topics, the level of maturity and the kind of approach are still heterogeneous across the EU landscape. However, the challenges of cyber security demand joint efforts and concerted action. Presentation Slides
• Carsten Meywirth, German Federal Office of Criminal Investigations (Bundeskriminalamt) BKA showed that international cyber crime is well organized and highly motivated and acts in an extremely professional way. He could report the successful take-over and closure of a “dark net” based trading platform early 2016. The operators of the platform could be put behind bars.
• Helmut Leopold of the Austrian Institute of Technology AIT showed the many dimensions of cyber security from the information technology (IT) perspective in an encompassing presentation. He concluded that the information and communications (ICT) platforms are becoming the most important critical infrastructure for a successful digital transformation. Presentation Slides
• Axel Deininger, Giesecke & Devrient, Germany presented solution approaches and decisive features which Giesecke & Devrient and other industry players are currently working on. Presentation Slides
• Georg Sigl, Fraunhofer AISEC Institute, Germany discussed important principles and architectures, which have to be in place in order for the continuous digital transformation to be successful. Production and development processes require secure structures and solutions components. Presentation Slides

The four afternoon workshops discussed various challenges which corporations are facing in their strive for implementing innovations while maintaining ongoing revenue streams. Fast product cycles, continuous changes of the value chain, managing innovations as well as handling organizational and technical transitions are all due to the ongoing digital transformation.
   Results WS1 - "Identify and manage changes and threats in the future value creation chain",
   Results WS2 - "Manage threats, challenges, and opportunities in innovation",
   Results WS3a - "Operational framework for Cyber Security",
   Results WS3b - "Operational framework for Cyber Security".

In the course of the podium discussions, a number of perspectives were articulated:

• Hans-Joachim Popp, German Aerospace Center DLR spoke for IT users from a number of industries when he stated that secure information technology already today is multi-facetted, huge and can hardly be managed. Sometimes one feels like “being in the jungle”.
• The IT industry was represented by Klaus Lenssen, CISCO who listed the efforts which are undertaken to contribute to more security with secure products and components.
• Richard Knowlton, Internet Security Alliance for Europe sees the political/societal discussion and the regulatory efforts very critical.
• Udo Helmbrecht, ENISA explained how the European Union raises commitment to increase resilience against security breaches within industry, administration and consumers. However, the remarked the slow acceptance of the digital identity card as a proven solution.
• The president of the Swiss Informatics Society SI, Jürg Gutknecht, stressed the dichotomy between privacy and security. He offered an unbiased view and recommended a fresh look at solution approaches, potentially with new implementations of critical components.

In his conclusion, moderator Hartmut Fuchs asked the podium, whether the „glass is half empty or half full“. All participants responded skeptically as well as realistically: discussions and evolution are moving in the right direction, efforts have to stay on a high level, and bringing together the many actors of cyber security is a clear must. This very conference at CeBIT is a clear show of progress as the societal implications of cyber (in)security need to get more public attention and debate. “The dialogue has just begun.“ as Gabriele Rittinghaus noted. “Let us get together again at the IT Security Expo and Congress IT-SA, October 18-20, 2016, Nuremberg, Germany!”
© GIC/mr

The Global Industry Club GIC is a platform for executives representing top-level functions in IT, production and logistics across all industries. Together with guests from science, associations and politics, we develop practical solutions and strategies for various aspects of the topic area "Industry 4.0 / Internet of Things". With international key players and communities, we operate a cross-functional and interdisciplinary platform for exchanging knowledge and best practices.