​​​SESSION 1 

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09:15    Welcome and Introduction

 

​​Mark Stephen, Journalist & Broadcaster, BBC

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09:25   Examining the Threat Landscape for 2026

 

• Key trends and observations from recent analysis

• Attack methods and tactic

• Vulnerabilities that are being targeted

• The current areas and actions practitioners should be prioritising

​

​​​​Lesley Kipling, Chief Security Advisor, Microsoft

​

09:50   Threat Hunting 2.0: Hunting in an Agentic World​​

​​

• What is hunting

• What was hunting

• When is this hunting style useful

• Enter LLMs/Agents… 

• Going deeper 

​

​​Melissa Goldsmith, Director of Cyber Threat Intelligence and Hunting, NBCUniversal

​

10:15   The Identity Security Blueprint: Human + Non-Human - Securing the Complete Identity Ecosystem

​​​

• Why identity is the new security perimeter - and why non-human identities (service accounts, APIs, workloads, and machine identities) now outnumber and out-risk human ones

• A practical blueprint for unified visibility, governance, and lifecycle control across the complete identity ecosystem

• How automation and adaptive access policies reduce identity risk while strengthening operational trust

• Building towards a resilient, zero-trust identity architecture that scales with the modern enterprise

​

Ray Manash, Head of Business Development & Customer Success (IAM), ManageEngine

​

​10:35    Combined Q&A

​11:00    Refreshments & Networking

SESSION 2 

​Session 2 will explore a series of key topics with a longer presentation format. The session will be run in a breakout format across parallel streams, providing delegates the opportunity to attend two breakout options. ​​

 

​11:35    First Breakout Option

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How to Keep Up with the Pace of Change: Panel Discussion

​

• The challenge posed by the increasing speed and complexity of security landscape

• How AI has impacted security and accelerated change

• Proactive steps that leaders can take to help improve decisioning, resilience & adaptability

• Embedding continuous learning alongside competing priorities 

• Leveraging change and new technology as a positive force for security

Liz Cochlin, CTO, Sero 

Sarah Howard-Smith, CISO, Zonal
Jaymie Thomas, CTO & Co-Founder, AI Wales
Carrie Jones, Principal Associate, Capital Law 
Clare Johnson, Head of Capability, ITSUS Consulting & Founder, Women in Cyber Unlimited 

​​

Think Like an Investigator, Before You Need One

​​

• Emerging technology isn't just changing cyber security; it's changing digital evidence. Explore AI, vehicle systems and IoT through a forensic lens.

• Where's the evidence? Discover what investigators can recover from today's connected technologies and why it matters.

• Every investigation is an opportunity. Learn how forensic findings uncover security gaps and reveal attacker behaviour.

• Prepare for the next incident, not the last one. Use digital forensics to build smarter, evidence-led incident response playbooks.

Beth Jenkins, Digital Forensics Lecturer, University of South Wales ​

​

12:10    Transition

12:15    Second Breakout Option

​

Thieves Don’t Break In… They Log In: Secure Your M365 in Minutes, Not MonthsAdam Hopes, Solutions ​

 

• ​​See why modern attacks bypass traditional protection - and what that means for your M365 environment

• Discover how to stay ahead with a joined-up approach to detection, protection, and recovery

• Learn how to quickly strengthen your security without months of heavy lift or complexity

​

Adam Hopes, Solutions Engineer, Barracuda Networks

​

Cyber Threats are Evolving Faster than Organisations can Adapt - and AI is Raising the Stakes

​

• Discover why resilience and intelligence-led defence are critical for Wales.

• Learn how BT is helping organisations anticipate risks and protect essential services.

• Explore how AI can shift cyber defence from reacting to threats to staying ahead of them. 

 

Lee Stephens, Director of Security Advisory Services, BT Group

 

​​12:45    Lunch & Networking

​​​

SESSION 3

​​​

​​13:35    Third Breakout Option

​

Effective Cyber Security for SMEs 

​

• Learn how BT is helping organisations anticipate risks and protect essential services.

• Differences in approach for SMEs as opposed to large organisations

• Risk appetite and maturity posture for security defences at SMEs (plus frameworks/ISO etc.)

• Drawing the Venn diagram: how to choose the tools and services to take on

• Embrace the single point of failure: how to staff your internal team

• If all goes wrong, what to have in place

​

Stephen Crowther, Technology & Analytics Director, SMF 

 

The Rise of AI Cybercrime and What You Can Do About It

​​

• How AI related crime is impacting business in practice

• Where cybercriminals are leveraging AI - current trends that we are seeing

• How AI is accelerating the scalability, speed, and complexity of attacks

• Hyper-personalisation of phishing, social engineering 

• Practical steps that business can take to improve their resilience

 

Luke Pulvirenti, AI Coordinator, Wales Cyber Resilience Centre 

 

MCP: Don't Shoot the Messenger

​​

•  Why has MCP become the focus of AI security concerns? MCP may be the messenger, but is the protocol really what we should be worried about? 

• The risks aren't new: API access, leaked credentials, excessive permissions, and automation already create these risks.

• AI changes the game, and the bigger shift is giving AI the ability to execute actions against our systems.

• MCP vs. DIY: Blocking MCP may simply push users towards AI-generated scripts, local credentials and less visibility.

• So what should we secure? Focus on governing access and actions - not the protocol carrying them.

 

Patricia Rodrigues, Sr Cloud Security Engineer, Admiral Group  

​​​

14:00   Transition to Plenary

​

14:05   CymruSOC: Protecting Wales Together

​​

• Building a shared cyber defence capability for the Welsh public sector

• Outcomes achieved since launch and the value delivered to members

• Enhancing resilience through regional and national partnerships

• What's next? The future vision for CymruSOC and cyber defence in Wale

 

Ryan James, CISO, Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council 

 

14:30   Adventures in Human Risk: Moving Past Training and Awareness to Real Impact

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• Why traditional awareness metrics often fail to reflect real risk

• How to identify and prioritise the human behaviours that actually matter

• Practical ways to deliver impact with limited budget, data, and resource

• Leveraging partnerships (e.g. BI, Privacy, Comms) to scale influence and outcomes

• How AI is both accelerating programme efficiency and amplifying human risk

• Simple, actionable ways to start shifting towards a human risk mode

 

Charlie Sinclair, Cyber Culture & Human Risk Senior Manager, Unilever 

 

14:55   Combined Q&A

 

Stephen Crowther, Technology & Analytics Director, SMF 
Luke Pulvirenti, AI Coordinator, Wales Cyber Resilience Centre 
Patricia Rodrigues, Sr Cloud Security Engineer, Admiral Group 
Ryan James, CISO, Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council 
Charlie Sinclair, Cyber Culture & Human Risk Senior Manager, Unilever 
 

15:20   Closing Remarks

Networking Drinks Reception

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15:30    Networking & Drinks Reception

16:30    Close of Conference​

 

*The conference agenda is provisional and subject to change.