More than 2,000 experts from the world of knowledge, business and government put their heads together at the ONE Conference on 3 & 4 October 2023 in The Hague. Among the topics discussed there were AI and quantum, which, as system technologies, will fundamentally change our society and also have a major impact on opportunities and risks surrounding cyber security.
The possibilities for applying this new technology seem endless. In the field of cybersecurity, artificial intelligence can help us develop secure software, predict new types of malware and automatically plug vulnerabilities. Thijs van Ede, researcher at the University of Twente; "AI techniques, such as Natural Language Processing (NLP), can additionally help us detect and describe cyber threats."
At the same time, there are concerns about AI's risks to our cybersecurity. It is becoming easier to develop malicious software and hackers can use this technology to write code for digital attacks. As experts at the ONE Conference pointed out, "both the power and the harm is in the technology, but the solution must also be found there."
Experts urged attendees to prepare for the arrival of these technologies as much as possible now. In the field of AI, European legislation (the AI Act, expected in mid-2024) is being drafted to protect people from the misuse of AI. For their part, companies can already include systems technologies in their risk analysis now. Ferd Grapperhaus, Managing Partner Legal at Deloitte and former Minister of Justice and Security, stressed at ONE the importance of creating broad public awareness of this. "We need to determine a joint approach that is needed to continue protecting our society from cyber attacks. And at the same time consider how the societal impact of this technology can be made manageable."
Organisation ONE Conference
The ONE Conference at the World Forum in The Hague, International City of Peace and Justice, was organised by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), part of the Ministry of Justice and Security, and the municipality of The Hague. With the ONE Conference, they aim to encourage and facilitate cooperation and knowledge sharing in the field of cybersecurity. More information about the ONE Conference can be found on the website www.one-conference.nl.
