The Basque Cybersecurity Centre continues to work on projects focused on making the Basque Country into a territory with a mature network of Cybersecurity companies, and where the implementation of Cybersecurity in Industry as a competitive tool is a priority.
On the 8th and 9th of May, the CSIT 9th Annual World Cyber Security Summit in Belfast. The singular feature of this summit is the fact that it unites the international research community, leaders of industry, creators of government policy and new companies and small and middle-size businesses from around the world under one roof.
At present we rely heavily on the technological know-how of places like the United States and Israel. In order to reduce this dependence and grow our own skills, the European authorities have recently been developing cooperation policies with suppliers, industry, centres for technological development and experts in the field.
The flagship events for Industry 4.0 and cybersecurity in the Basque Country will be celebrated jointly this year, remaining true to our goal of serving as a meeting point for public institutions, companies, business clusters, technological centres and universities, at local, national and international levels.
The Basque CyberSecurity Centre and the Basque Government's General Secretariat for Foreign Affairs have met in Madrid with representatives from various foreign Embassies in order to promote the cybersecurity skills present in the technological ecosystem of the Basque Country.
The Basque cybersecurity ecosystem has demonstrated its potential at the RSA Conference, one of the most internationally important cybersecurity events, held in San Francisco (USA) from the 4th to the 8th of March. During the event the Centro Vasco de Ciberseguridad-Basque Cybersecurity Centre (BCSC), in collaboration with several Basque cybersecurity companies, organised a seminar to showcase the potential of the Basque cybersecurity ecosystem, accompanied by the minister for Economic Development and Infrastructures, Arantxa Tapia.
The Basque Cybersecurity Centre (BCSC) has performed two internationally significant actions which place the Basque Country as a European reference point for cybersecurity and will strengthen the position of Basque industrial and research cybersecurity ecosystems beyond our borders, following the strategy designed by the Basque Government's Department for Economic Development and Infrastructures and the Grupo SPRI.
The Basque Cybersecurity Centre (BCSC) began life in September 2017 as an organisation designated by the Basque Government to promote cybersecurity in the Basque Country. Its activity revolved around three fundamental aspects.
Continuing advances in the 4.0 strategy of the Basque industrial sector have been the driving force behind the development of a strong cybersecurity industry over the last few years. Uniting in one single geographical area both an important demand for cybersecurity services and a well-rounded offer of solutions, the Basque Country has evolved into an interesting ecosystem for investment and international entrepreneurship.
This year a total of 102 companies - 56 in Guipuzkoa, 25 in Biscay and 21 in Alava - have taken advantage of the Basque Government grants for boosting industrial cybersecurity. The programme, a pioneer in our area, is driven by SPRI and had an initial budget of 600,000 Euros, which was later extended to one million Euros thanks to the high number to companies which applied for a grant. This public investment will serve to promote privately funded investment in cybersecurity to the tune of 2.34 million Euros.
