Priya Patel
TLDR
Annual CyberIsle conference in the Isle of Man will focus on cyber threats, featuring presentations from experts on topics such as small business advice, artificial intelligence, and deception techniques used by criminals.
An annual conference designed to help people and businesses “prepare, respond, and recover” from cyber-attacks is set to take place on later this week. The Isle of Man government’s sixth annual Cyberisle event takes place at the Comis Hotel on Thursday. The event features 20 presentations, talks, and panel discussions involving world-renowned experts from bodies such as Microsoft and the UK National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).
Topics set to be covered include practical advice for small businesses, artificial intelligence, and the deception techniques used by criminals. Chief security advisor for Microsoft Lesley Kipling will talk about the lessons learned from the Midnight Blizzard cyber attack, which the technology giant faced last year. The event will also see three representatives from NCSC, the UK government’s technical authority for cyber threats, discussing how the nations of the British Isles can work together to safeguard national infrastructure.
Prevention Director of the Office of Cyber Security and Information Assurance (Ocsia) Mike Haywood said the island faced the same threats as the rest of the world, including ransomware, identity theft, phishing, and the hacking of social media accounts. Mr. Haywood highlighted the importance of being prepared for cyber threats and advised seeking guidance on prevention and actions to take in case of a cyber-attack.
While Ocsia has seen various fake Facebook pages and scams recently, the national level faces regular attempts to breach the government’s network, which are intercepted and managed by the network security team. Those interested in cyber security can follow updates on BBC Isle of Man or reach out with story ideas to IsleofMan@bbc.co.uk.
