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CyberNI Week 2026 – Wrap-Up!
Following the success of CyberNI Week 2025, the Northern Ireland Cyber Security Centre coordinated CyberNI Week 2026, which saw a series of events from 2–8 March.
Across the week, our local cyber security community delivered 30 events involving government, industry, academia, and the charity and voluntary sectors. These sessions explored an impressive range of themes, including Cyber Incident Response for Small Organisations, Scam Prevention, AI Safety and Ethics, Live Data Protection, CTEM, Human–AI Interaction, and Cybersecurity for Businesses, among many others.
We also celebrated the top ten teams in the CyberFirst Girls Competition, and the week concluded with an inspiring International Women’s Day event at Danske Bank, recognising the achievements and contributions of women across the cybersecurity profession. More than 2,000 participants joined events in person and online, all supporting our shared mission to strengthen cyber security awareness throughout Northern Ireland.
On Tuesday 3 March, the NICSC hosted the annual CyberNI Conference, bringing together cyber security leaders from both the public and private sectors. The event showcased the value of collaboration in enhancing Northern Ireland’s cyber resilience.
Attendees heard from high-profile speakers including Richard Horne, CEO of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC); Peter King from lead sponsors Acumen Cyber; and investigative journalist Geoff White. Engaging presentations and Q&A discussions helped highlight key challenges and opportunities facing the sector.
In partnership with the NI Cyber Cluster, the conference also included a series of technical side sessions providing deeper specialist insight. These were delivered by Cyber Guarded (CyberNI Week Launch Event Sponsor), NCSC, CSIT, Queen’s University Belfast, and Madigan Solutions. Topics covered included identity-based threats, AI in cyber security, and emerging organisational risks.
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) also ran a dedicated session for Operators of Essential Services (OES) across Energy, Transport, Water, and Health, offering an overview of the upcoming Cyber Security and Resilience (Network and Information Systems) Bill.
The conference was a resounding success.
NICSC extend our sincere thanks to all event organisers, sponsors, exhibitors, speakers, and attendees. Your support and contributions were vital in delivering another outstanding CyberNI Week.
The breadth and diversity of this year’s programme demonstrated our sector’s ongoing commitment to the theme: “Collaborating to Strengthen Cyber Resilience.”
Planning for CyberNI Week 2027 is already underway, and we look forward to building on this year’s momentum and continuing to strengthen collaboration across the local cyber security community.