"The city of Bern has been attacked 23 million times"
The Swiss Cyber Security Days 2024 will take place in Bern for the first time. The conference aims to contribute to the cyber resilience of business and politics.
The Swiss Cyber Security Days (SCSD) are being held in Bern for the first time this year. "It is right and important that this conference is now being held in Bern, because this is whereThe event enables science, business and politics to network and exchange information on the latest developments", explained Alec von Graffenried, Mayor of Bern, during a press conference.
He emphasized the urgency of the issue by referring to impressive figures: "Last year, the city of Bern was attacked 23 million times. Our ICT infrastructure is practically permanently in defense mode." It is therefore crucial for both the public sector and companies to maintain cyber security at a high level and to continuously develop it further.
Doris Fiala, President of the SCSD, explained: "Cybercrime is undoubtedly one of the greatest international risks for business, politics and society." Although resilience may be a buzzword, it still gets to the heart of the conference. "We cannot completely prevent cybercrime, but we can strengthen our defenses and our resilience." It is "a little shocking" to see that Switzerland ranks behind countries such as North Macedonia or Kazakhstan in the Global Cybersecurity Index, Fiala noted. However, security is not just the first task of the state: "Every individual must make an effort to improve it."
Speakers from the fields of research, defense, administration, business and civil society will be appearing in Bern on 20 and 21 February. Speakers include Georgii Dubynskyi, Deputy Minister for Digital Transformation of Ukraine, Christian-Marc Lifländer, Head of NATO's Cyber Security Division and Audrey Tang, Digital Minister in Thailand. The detailed program is available on the Swiss Cyber Security Days website.