Salaries in Northern Ireland Cyber Security Market Worth £60 million

The 7th World Cyber Security Technology Research Summit was held in Belfast at Queen’s University on May 9. Many prominent people in the industry believe that Northern Ireland is poised and rapidly becoming to be the cyber security capital of Europe. The theme of the conference was the need for a consistent investment and support in the digital security world. The last two decades had shown that the development of a hack-proof software security protection will always be a continued necessity since digital criminals evolve with equal sophistication. There is no end to the development of the techniques and skills of cyber criminals to hack records and activities of individuals and institutions, which range from the financial, defence, commercial, medical and other sectors of every entity and nation.

David Crozier, the event’s curator and the head of Centre for Secure Information Technologies’ (CSIT) strategic partnership and engagement, introduced the conference by saying that since our world has nowhere to go but to be more digitally advanced, cyber protection is something that anyone and everyone can identify with. This goes without saying that the country or place that can generate and provide the best cyber protection software and tools will benefit from high employment rates and economic vitality, which tie in with Northern Ireland’s current advantages in terms of facilitating investments by providing a keen and knowledgeable cyber workforce as well as advanced facilities that are already in place.

All the attendees were invited. There were about 1,000 experts in the audience. The audience was comprised of a mix of international policy makers, law enforcement people, technological leaders, cyber professionals and researchers. The goal of the summit was twofold. Entrepreneurs viewed the conference from a financial outlook. For them, the continued and stable evolution of the industry meant that there would always be a void to fill when it came to engineering advanced security software. Naturally, this would always be a lucrative source of profit, cash flow and wages for the labour force. Government and law enforcement people, on the other hand, regarded the summit from a national protection and defence standpoint, which would always be paramount in policing, military and intelligence work.

Professor Sir John McCanny, BSc, PhD, DSc was one of their prominent speakers. He is a global expert on cryptology, video processing and the digital world. He is distinguished by many awards, including the highest honour in the Royal Irish Academy, which is the Cunningham medal. In his speech, Sir McCanny highlighted the active and pivotal role that Northern Ireland plays when it comes to cyber security. He eagerly pointed out the crucial part that Northern Ireland plays in the current cyber security industry by saying that all the infrastructures are in good order, which guarantees Northern Ireland’s success for accomplishing their objectives in the present and the future. This means that Northern Ireland will continue to benefit greatly from gainful employment in the cyber security. He calculated that the overall local salary is close to £60 million annually. Sir McCanny reminded the audience that the industry is growing tremendously. Thus, it is important to develop and train future cyber security leaders for the next generation by supporting international research and innovation.

Several other speakers expressed a similar viewpoint. Conrad Prince, a recognized and honourable figure in the UK signal and the cyber intelligence community reiterated the same sentiment. He said that Belfast is the best place in Europe for investments in cyber security. While Gary Robinson, the CEO and co-founder of Uleska, a company in Belfast engaged in the research and development of software that can easily be added to other software in order to enhance a company’s computer’s security features, said that Northern Ireland is the leading and foremost source of US foreign investment in the digital world. The global cyber security market currently generates £33 billion. Mr. Robinson stated that there is no reason why Northern Ireland cannot continue to provide and dominate the workforce of the cyber industry sector.

The Importance of Belfast and Northern Ireland in Cyber Security

The European Union considers CSIT as an institution that is on the cutting edge of cyber security research and progress. As a part of the Belfast Institute of Electronic, Communication and Technology (ECIT), CSIT is located at Queen’s University campus. More than a decade ago, Northern Ireland had wisely positioned its local commerce to focus on the creation and improvement of the security of the cyber industry. Now that the resources are in place, from the skilled workers, offices, colleges and other environmental structures that are conducive to globally prevent and fight cyber crime, Northern Ireland is reaping the financial benefits of its undertaking.

In fact, CSIT recently reported that their centre had agreed to a full partnership with Direct Line Insurance Group, which is the UK’s most dominant insurer in the retail industry. Direct Line has brand ownership of companies like Direct Group Churchill and Green Flag. This collaboration ensures that both of them will work together toward the progress of cyber security. For example, Direct Line will be the first company to try the security software that CSIT continually develops. This includes simulations, cyber resistance training, awareness, and desktop exercises.

The Seventh World Cyber Security Technology Research Summit strengthened Northern Ireland’s momentum and position in terms of providing the greatest and most innovative resources for the cyber age. With the planning and initiative of the people like Professor Sir John McCanny and Gary Robinson, there is every reason to believe that Northern Ireland will continue to be the cyber security capital not only of Europe but also of other continents.