Cybersecurity conference CyberChess 2023

On 4 and 5 October, during European Cybersecurity Month, Riga will host the tenth international cybersecurity conference CyberChess 2023. The event will provide an opportunity to engage with and learn from world-class cybersecurity experts from both the Baltic region and beyond. This year’s conference will place a strong emphasis on strategic and political cybersecurity topics, while also featuring a dedicated session for delving into more technical issues. Additionally, given that the Latvian .LV domain is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, there will be a special focus on addressing domain name system security concerns within the Baltic region.

The CyberChess conference stands as one of the most significant cybersecurity events in the Baltics, consistently drawing hundreds of experts in-person and remotely each year, with the exception of the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions period. The programme this year includes more than 60 keynote speeches and discussions by local and international experts across three distinct sessions: strategic-political, technical and domain names.

Cybersecurity applies to individuals personally, as well as to the security of institutions, companies and countries. For example, on the Management of digital waste panel, experts from the marketing, domain and cybersecurity sectors will address a topic that concerns everyone who has ever owned a domain name, visits websites, spends time on the internet, or uses email: what is digital waste, what is its value on the secondary market, and how to manage it properly to prevent its exploitation in cyber-attacks. Mārtiņš Kaļķis, Head of the Cyber Security Division at LMT, will share the unique experience of Latvijas Mobilais Telefons in establishing the first National Guard sub-unit in a commercial company, which is unprecedented in Latvia.

“Given the geopolitical challenges, the number of cyber-attacks has increased significantly over the last two years, especially in the public sector. The number of such incidents is expected to remain high in the foreseeable future, which is why cybersecurity needs more attention than ever. This is why we would like to highlight the importance of cooperation between public and private sector institutions, as well as between members of the international CERT community,” said Baiba Kaškina, Head of CERT.LV.

On both days of the conference, the Capture the Flag (CTF) cybersecurity competition will be held online. The competition is designed to challenge participants to take on a variety of cybersecurity challenges in categories such as cryptography, network analysis, forensics, binary code and more. This competition was first organised as part of the CyberChess conference in 2019, and due to the overwhelming response and interest, it has been decided to keep it as a permanent part of the conference. Information on the CTF is available at www.cyberchess.lv under the “CTF” section. Registration will open in the next few days. Any cybersecurity enthusiast who wants to test their skills and knowledge can apply. For those participants who are not able to find their own teammates, there will be a Discord channel where they can interact with other players and form teams.

The conference will commence on 3 October with specialized hands-on workshops, collectively known as CyberChess Training. Due to the limited number of places available, priority will be given to personnel from national and local authorities. These workshops will have separate registration and are open even if you are not planning to attend the conference itself. The Recon, Scanning, and Enumeration Attacks workshop will look at techniques used by attackers to find weaknesses in network security. Cyber Fortress – Build the most resilient ICT security system, is a simulation game consisting of building the most resistant ICT environment security system and effective response to various threats from cyberspace.

The conference will take place at Radisson BLU Latvija (Elizabetes iela 55, Riga) and online at cyberchess.lv. The conference will be conducted in English.

Everyone is encouraged to register for the conference at www.cyberchess.lv. This is an excellent opportunity to engage with global and local industry experts in person, interact with opinion leaders and attend presentations that will not be streamed live. Following the event, all registered participants, whether attending in person or remotely, will receive an electronic confirmation of their participation.

The conference is organised by CERT.LV, NIC.LV and the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Latvia in cooperation with the ISACA Latvian Chapter, the Latvian Internet Association, the .EE registry Estonian Internet Foundation and the .LT registry DomReg.LT.

The conference is co-financed by the European Union and supported by the Latvian National Coordination Centre of the European Cyber Security Competence Centre (NCC-LV), ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), SIA LMT, SIA Tet, Latvia State Radio and Television Center (LVRTC), SIA Cyber Circle, CSC Corporate Domain, SANS Institute, CLICO Baltics, Recorded Future, Synergy Consulting and CentralNic Registry.