Estonian president opens 14th international CyCon cyber conflict conference

TALLINN – Estonian President Alar Karis opened the 14th international conference on cyber conflict, CyCon, on Wednesday.

The 14th international conference on cyber conflict, CyCon, is taking place at Swissotel Tallinn from May 31 to June 3. Altogether 600 participants on site and almost 250 online will hear from the most influential cyber defense speakers from around the world, featured in keynote sessions and discussion panels.

"Multinational cooperation and information sharing will be a key to combatting cyber threats, including in case of an armed conflict. It makes sense to cooperate and exchange information, such as indications of compromise, between governments belonging to the Western community of values. Having good friends is our greatest strength in this battle," Karis said in his opening remarks.

One of the discussion panels also focuses on the war in Ukraine and how cyber dimensions play a role in contemporary conflicts.

"I truly believe that if our help and support to Ukraine are steadfast, Ukraine will secure its freedom, democracy, and its rightful place in the European family. But we must all pitch in, and continue to help Ukraine with our cyber defense expertise, information and resources," the president added.

This year’s theme is "Keep Moving!". Understood both literally and figuratively, it invites discussions about cyber security in transportation and in supply chains, autonomous technologies and automation, but also encourages to think about ways how to coordinate our joint response to the challenges brought by new technologies and how to avoid being paralyzed by the next global crisis. Also, in the current situation where the cyber domain is in the spotlight because of its impact in warfare, it is exceedingly important to discuss possible outcomes and developments.

Col. Jaak Tarien, director of NATO Cooperative Cyber Defense Center of Excellence (CCDCOE), said it is a great pleasure to have so many cyber experts here in Tallinn. After two years of virtual conferences, it is very heartwarming to see so many people here, Tarien said.

The International Conference on Cyber Conflict, one of the flagship events of the NATO CCDCOE, has entered its second decade. CyCon is a multi-track conference focusing on technical, policy and legal aspects of cyber security and cyber defense, from both civilian and military perspectives. It is also one of the few events combining an academic conference with policy conversations. The conference will provide a profound overview of current cybersecurity and cyber defense challenges.

CyCon is organized by the NATO CCDCOE, a NATO-accredited competence center, think tank and training institution that focuses mainly on training and exercises in the field of cyber security.