Workshop Preventing Cyber-theft of Trade Secrets
On behalf of the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) and the Directorate General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs of the European Commission, we are glad to invite you to our workshop on Preventing Cyber-theft of Trade Secrets: Awareness toolkit for SMEs!
The global economy is becoming increasingly digitalised but also at risk of cyber-attacks. More and more, foreign actors are trying to rob European companies of their trade secrets to steal their innovation and improve their competitiveness. In 2022, a survey sample showed that nearly half of EU companies experienced cyber-attacks. The average cost of cyber-attacks in 2023 ranged between EUR 8.9 thousand to EUR 22.3 thousand per company, but such an attack can also easily take a company out of business! Big companies are also not the only ones facing threats. Small companies can be targeted, potentially putting a whole supply chain at risk.
Considering the important risks that cyber-theft poses to the EU economy, EISMEA and DG GROW are hosting this workshop to present a toolkit designed to raise awareness about the serious threat of cyber-theft of trade secrets and improve SMEs’ ability to fight against it.
The workshop will gather insight to ensure SMEs and the broader European economy are cyber-secure and resilient against all threats to businesses’ trade secrets. It will also foster expert discussion on how to maximize the impact of the toolkit.
This workshop is open to both individuals interested in learning more about cyber-theft, and seasoned professionals keen to share expertise and influence the design of EU policy in cybersecurity.
Agenda
| Title | Workshop agenda | Speakers |
| Introduction | Introduction of the workshop
9:30-9:45 (15 minutes) |
Natalia Martinez Paramo, Head of Unit, SMP/SME Pillar, Internal Market and Support to Standardisation, European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA)
Claudia Martinez-Felix, Deputy Head of Unit, Intangible Economy, DG GROW Julia Rzepecka, Project Manager, Executive Director at EY Belgium Ivan Bosch Chen, Senior Consultant at EY Belgium |
| Session 1: Advising policy-makers and SMEs | Recommendations to tackle Cyber-theft
9:45-10:00 (15 minutes) |
Francesca Squillante, Senior consultant at EY Belgium
Ivan Bosch Chen, Senior consultant at EY Belgium |
| Expert point of view + 5 min Q&A for each speaker 10:00 – 11:00 (60 minutes) |
Pascal Steichen, Chair of the European Cybersecurity Competence Centre and the Luxembourg House of Cybersecurity
Sebastiano Toffaletti, Secretary-General of the European Digital SME Alliance Raul Rikk, Strategy and Development Director at Milrem Robotics. Founder of NATO’s Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE) and former director of the National Cyber Security Department in Estonia |
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| Break | 15-minute break 11:00 -11:15 | |
| Session 2: Protecting European SMEs against cyber-theft | Presentation of practical toolkit to raise awareness of Cyber-theft among SMEs 11:15-12:05 (50 minutes) |
Roeland de Koning, Project lead Cybertheft Toolbox, Director Public Security, CISO Capgemini Invent NL Ana-Isabel Llacayo, Senior Manager, Security Awareness Expert, Capgemini Invent NL
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| Illustration of toolkit’s training questions 12:05 – 12:20 (15 minutes) |
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| Q and A toolkit designers 12:20 – 12:35 (15 minutes) |
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| Conclusion | Conclusion of workshop 12:35-12:40 (5 minutes) |
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This online workshop is an initiative of the European Union.
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