Newsletter for December 2023

SFI Norwegian Centre for Cybersecurity in Critical Sectors

Seasonal Greetings

Dear NORCICS community,

As we approach the end of another fruitful year, I find myself reflecting on the exciting journey
we've undertaken as the Norwegian Centre for Cybersecurity in Critical Sectors. It is with great pleasure and gratitude that I extend my warmest seasonal greetings to each and every one of you.

Our accomplishments this year have been notable. The dedication, hard work, and innovative spirit displayed by each member of our community have contributed to the ongoing success of NORCICS. From research projects to collaborative efforts that have forged new paths in our field,

we have made significant impact.

As we move towards the festive season, let us take a moment to celebrate not only our collective achievements but also the human relationships that define our collaboration.
The strength of NORCICS lies not just in the bright researchers that make up our team
but also in the sense of community and shared purpose that binds us together.

Looking ahead, I am excited about the opportunities that the coming year holds for us.
With new challenges come new possibilities, and I am confident that our collective talents
will continue to drive innovation, foster collaboration, and further elevate NORCICS.

I want to express my sincere gratitude for your dedication and hard work throughout the year.

I wish you and your loved ones a joyful holiday season filled with warmth, laughter,
and moments of well-deserved rest.

May the upcoming year be filled with even greater achievements,
exciting discoveries, and more innovation for NORCICS.

Thank you for being an integral part of our success.

Best regards,

Prof. Sokratis Katsikas

NORCICS Director

NTNU CCIS and SFI NORCICS hosted a joint conference

NTNU CCIS and SFI NORCICS hosted a joint conference on November 22nd in Trondheim.

The conference gathered experts from industry, academia, regulatory, and standardization bodies,

and provided a unique opportunity to meet and exchange insights and strategies for dealing with

the evolving threats in the field.

The conference included engaging keynotes as well as group discussions within topics on the societal implications of cyber security, artificial intelligence, and crypto engineering, as well as the outcomes produced by NORCICS in the past three years and how these results are and could be utilized by
the industry.

About 150 participants joined us in the conference, and they actively participated in group work session in which they discussed four different topics, and they offered their feedback via menti sessions.

The first group work discussed the Obligations for critical sector operators stemming from recent international regulations, the majority of the comments talked about the need for training and awareness among employees and stakeholders.

The second topic discussed was Exploitation of research results by industry, and the giving comments were: hire a researcher, open publications, List of research projects at academia to inform industry, and Small internship.

The topic for the third group work was Security challenges with deploying AI, after discussion,

the groups came out with the following challenges: AI is not designed for security, AI is an assistant help. We can not completely rely on, and the need to check data quality proactively.

The last group work discussed the Challenges when migrating to post-quantum cryptography,

in which Compatibility to old legacy systems was the main challenge.

We want to thank everyone who had the opportunity to join us in Trondheim for a very interesting day. We hope to see you again for our annual event next year!

Photos from the conference are by
Kai Dragland

Visit to the National Smart Grid Laboratory and B5G Laboratory NTNU Trondheim 23.11.23

In connection with the NTNU CCIS and SFI NORCICS joint conference 2023, a visit to the National Smart Grid Laboratory and Beyond 5G Laboratory was also hosted at the NTNU campus in Trondheim

on November 23rd.

SFI-NORCICS: An introduction to Work Package 4 -

“Demonstration environments“