CONFERENCE - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the African Union Cyber Security Expert Group
Abdul-Hakeem is dedicated to growing Africa's cybersecurity economy, emphasizing empowerment and digital resilience for young professionals.
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- Managing Director at Ukuvuma Security
Andrew Chester is Managing Director at Ukuvuma Security, a cyber security consulting & managed security services firm - specializing in security threat assessments, threat hunting, security operations and security control framework implementations.
With over 10 years' experience in both offensive and defensive security tactics, techniques and procedures, Andrew has built Ukuvuma Security from a security technology start-up, to a trendsetter within the Africa & Middle Eastern region.
Andrew has taken the lead in threat hunting & information security teams within multi-national businesses across African and Middle Eastern countries, whilst building successful, sustainable, security organizations and infrastructure.
A passionate security threat researcher and technology evangelist, he has worked with numerous security methodologies, technologies and programs, whilst successfully adapting security programs and frameworks to suit businesses of all needs - from secure mobility for mobile workforces, to advanced, persistent, threat prevention programs for organizations of over 65 000 staff count and upward.
As a Certified Information Security Systems Professional (CISSP), Andrew continuously pushes the cyber security programs within all organizations which he is involved in. With a strong enthusiasm for entrepreneurship across the African region, and a keen eye on the global landscape, Andrew constantly searches for new opportunities, technologies and ways to transform cyber security initiatives into becoming a business enablement tool.
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- SVP of Content Strategy for KnowBe4 Africa
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- Cyber and Digital Policy Officer at U.S. Embassy Pretoria
- Digital Policy Officer at U.S. Embassy Pretoria
Daniel Jackson is the Cyber and Digital Policy Officer at U.S. Embassy Pretoria, assuming this role in October 2022. He is the lead on issues related to the digital economy, information and communications technology, and cybersecurity for the U.S. Mission to South Africa.
He previously served a tour at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, including a rotation as Acting Deputy Chief of American Citizen Services.
Prior to joining the Foreign Service in 2018, Mr. Jackson served as India Desk Officer for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Before this, he oversaw trade and investment efforts in China and Japan for the State of Nebraska, promoting exports of manufactured products, recruiting foreign direct investment, and managing international engagements and overseas trade missions for the Governor's Office.
Mr. Jackson holds an M.A. in International Relations from the University of Chicago and a B.A. in Politics from New York University. He speaks Italian and Romanian and studied Mandarin and Ukrainian at the U.S. Department of State's Foreign Service Institute.
Job Titles:
- Managing Director of Cyanre
Danny Myburgh is the Managing Director of Cyanre - The Digital Forensic Lab and LexTrado EDS, which specializes in digital forensic investigations, data fraud trend analysis, Incident Response, e-discovery services and litigation support services. Danny established and commanded the SAPS National Computer Crime Investigation Unit from 2000 until 2002. Danny was the chairman of the Interpol African Working Party on Cyber Crime from 2002 until 2005 and represented Africa on the Interpol International Steering Committee on Cyber Crime. He was the chairperson of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners Cyber Forensic Forum from 2011 to early 2016 and again since beginning of 2018. Danny was also a member of the BRICS Expert Working Group on Cyber Security aimed at enhancing the coordination on Cybersecurity issues between the BRICS States. Danny's Qualifications include:
Seized Computer Evidence Recovery Specialist (SCERS) from the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centre (FLETC) in Brunswick, Georgia, USA
EnCE
National Diploma Police Administration
Postgraduate Diploma in Information Systems: Computer Forensics from the University of Cape Town
BComm Honours degree in Information Systems - Cyber Forensics (UCT-2013) (Cum Laude)
MComm - Forensic Accounting degree (NWU-2016)
(Cum Laude)
with the topic of study being Developing a framework for the search and seizure of digital evidence by forensic investigators in South Africa - exploring and defining the legal requirements of digital search and seizure in South Africa inline with international standards, best practises and case law.
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder and CTO of the IT Security Consultancy Whirly Labs ( Pty ) Ltd
Dr. Fabian Yamaguchi is co-founder and CTO of the IT security consultancy Whirly Labs (Pty) Ltd, Associate Professor Extraordinary at Stellenbosch University, and Chief Scientist Emeritus at Qwiet.ai (formerly ShiftLeft Inc.). He has over 15 years of experience in cyber security, both as an individual contributor and in leadership roles. Most recently, he was a founding team member of ShiftLeft Inc where he built and lead the R&D team that designed and implemented the technology for automated vulnerability discovery at the heart of the product offering - based on his 2015 award-winning PhD thesis "Pattern-Based Vulnerability Discovery".
Throughout his career, he has identified previously unknown vulnerabilities in widely used software such as Microsoft Windows and Linux kernels, the Squid proxy server, and the VLC media player. He has presented his findings and techniques at both major industry conferences such as BlackHat USA, DefCon, First, and CCC, and renowned academic security conferences such as ACSAC, IEEE Security and Privacy, and CCS.
He is the inventor of the code property graph and lead developer of the open-source code analysis platform Joern. Fabian holds a PhD in computer science from the University of Goettingen and a master's degree in computer engineering from Technical University Berlin.
Job Titles:
- Chief Researcher at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research
- Head of Information
Dr Jabu Mtsweni is the Head of Information and Cyber Security Centre and Chief Researcher at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), NRF-Rated Researcher (C2), and a Certified Cybersecurity Manager, Research Fellow at the Stellenbosch University, and Technical Leader of the National Policy Data Observatory. He has published over 80 peer-reviewed conference and journal articles over the years in different forums.
Job Titles:
- Department of Telecommunications
- South African Department of Communications and Digital Technologies ( DCDT ) Managing the National Computer Security Incident Response Team ( CSIRT )
Dr. Kiru Pillay has over thirty years of experience in the ICT sector, as an ICT practitioner, academic and researcher. He is currently in the Public Sector at the South African Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT) managing the national Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT). He holds a PhD in Information Systems and is a visiting academic at Stellenbosch and Wits universities conducting post-graduate supervision curriculum development and some lecturing responsibilities.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Conference Committee
Dr Kriyanka Moodley was exposed to information systems, specializing in information systems strategy and information security through her mentorship with Prof Manoj Maharaj. She holds a PhD in Leadership from the Graduate School of Business and Leadership, at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.
Her doctoral research looked at our economic reality which is rooted in a global eco-system of cultural, ecological, social and political contexts, interwoven and grown in uncertain, multifaceted, and unpredictable ways. These situations require a mindset on the part of change agents, leaders and individuals that is more open and focused on emerging changes. Her thesis showed that decision-makers in all institutions and systems need to go on a collective journey from seeing only their own viewpoint (ego-system awareness), to experiencing the system from the perspectives of others in the system (eco-system awareness). Bridging the gap between eco-system awareness and ego-system awareness can be identified as the main challenge of leadership today.
Her professional interests include academia, marketing, leadership, technology and innovation and social development. Her academic and commercial work continue to give her local and international exposure.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Conference Committee
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- Director, Board Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams ( FIRST ) Senior Advisor, Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs
- Member of the Board of Directors of FIRST
- Senior IT - Security Expert
Serge Droz is a senior IT-Security expert and seasoned incident responder. Today he works as a senior advisor at the Swiss federal department of foreign affairs.
He studied physics at ETH Zurich and the University of Alberta, Canada and holds a PhD in theoretical astrophysics. He has worked in private industry and academia in Switzerland and Canada in different security roles, at a national CERT in Switzerland for more than 20 years.
Serge is a member of the board of directors of FIRST (Forum for Incident Response and Security Teams), the premier organisation of recognised global leaders in incident response. In this role he actively participates in discussion relating to cyber security at various policy bodies, in particular related to norm building.
Serge is an active speaker and a regular trainer for CSIRT (Computer Security IncidentResponse Team) courses around the world.
Job Titles:
- Lecturer
- Member of the Conference Committee
Dr Upasana Singh is a lecturer in the Discipline of Information Systems and Technology at the University of KwaZulu Natal, Westville Campus, in Durban South Africa. She has a keen interest in Technology in Education and Sustainable IT practices. Her PhD was on electronic assessment for which she developed and evaluated an online interactive tool to evaluate e-assessment systems, named e-SEAT. She successfully implemented the first formative e-assessment in the School of MIG at UKZN in 2014. In 2014, she received 2 research awards, one from the NRF and the other from UKZN, CLMS Teaching and Learning Unit. She served as panel reviewer for the NRFs Joint Collaboration applications in 2015 and 2016.
Joint academic collaboration is one of her fortes having secured 3 MoUs with international universities. This has provided her with the platform to share her knowledge as invited guest speaker to local and international conferences in South Africa, India and Mauritius in 2015, 2017 and 2018. She expanded this collaboration interest by volunteering as local conference co-ordinator for the 3rd IEEE ICACCE conference, held in Durban in 2016; e-MIG 2017 Conference in Mauritius in 2017; a committee member for the AAE Summer School in France 2017; Program Chair for IFCTN held by Chandigarh University, in partnership with UKZN in 2018, and the 1st IEEE icABCD conference to be held in Durban in 2018. In 2017 she was selected to participate in the "Joint Expertise Programme" at Chemnitz Technical University in Germany; and selected to represent UKZN at MoodleMoot Australia in Sydney.
She also has a keen interest in joint curriculum development with International Higher Education Institutions. In 2018 she was nominated on a 2 year training program in "Teaching Advancement in Universities" (TAU).
Eric Akumiah is an experienced professional in the ICT industry with over 25 years of experience. He has spent the past 12 years specializing in cybersecurity, focusing on policy and strategy implementation, as well as technical management of CSIRT (Computer Security Incident Response Team). During his tenure in Ghana, Eric played a pivotal role as the Cybersecurity Lead, contributing to the development of Ghana's cybersecurity policy and strategy. He spearheaded the establishment of the Ghana National CSIRT, CERT-GH, and supported the formation of sector-specific CSIRTs in Ghana. As the first manager of CERT-GH, Eric successfully managed its operations for three years. In addition to his cybersecurity expertise, Eric has a background in the DNS industry. He previously served as an administrative officer at the .GH Country Code Top Level Domain (ccTLD), Deputy Executive Director of the World Wide Top Level Domain (wwTLD) based in Bangkok, Thailand, and as the first Administrative Manager for the Africa Top Level Domain Organization (AfTLD). Eric holds a Master of Communications Management degree from Strathclyde Business School in Scotland, UK. He also served as an adjunct lecturer in E- Commerce at the University of Cape Coast, Ghana for 14 years. Currently, Eric serves as one of the FIRST Africa Regional Liaisons, continuing his dedication to the field of cybersecurity and promoting collaboration within the industry.
Job Titles:
- Senior Cybersecurity Consultant for the World Bank
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- Endowed Chair of Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity at the University of North Texas
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- Cybersecurity and Product Security Researcher
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- Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cyberspace and Digital Policy
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- HR and Training Manager, NIL Data South Africa
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- Director of the LINK Centre
Luci Abrahams is Director of the LINK Centre, a university-based research centre located at the Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct (Wits University). She has led the Centre since 2002, focused on ‘digital transitions in economy and society', including attention to digital innovation and digital transformation in institutions and economic sectors. She takes an interdisciplinary, creative strategy approach and is knowledgeable in digital strategy design, digital innovation and leadership, emerging smart cities, cybersecurity resilience design, transition to digital government, building knowledge-intensive organisations, intellectual property rights and knowledge governance, ICT policy and regulation.
Luci has led or participated in a number of strategy design projects and made public presentations, including on the digital skills gap analysis (DTPS), digital government strategy (GITOC), digital knowledge economy (Northern Cape Department of Economic Development), and e-government monitoring and evaluation (GPG). She designs new courses for industry and government, and teaches global trends in digital innovation, digital strategy formulation, innovation theory and digital transformation. In parallel to her university-based work, Luci has had a public service career.
She served on the Ministerial Review Panel for the Science, Technology and Innovation Institutional Landscape (2015-2017); and has served on many public sector boards and committees. Luci holds a BSc Chemistry (UCT), a Postgraduate Diploma in Public Policy and Development Administration (Wits) and a PhD (Wits).
Melissa Hathaway is a leading expert in cyberspace policy and cybersecurity. She served in two U.S. presidential administrations, spearheading the Cyberspace Policy Review for President Barack Obama and leading the Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative (CNCI) for President George W. Bush.
As President of Hathaway Global Strategies LLC, she brings a multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional perspective to strategic consulting and strategy formulation for public and private sector clients. Having served on the board of directors for three public companies and three non-profit organizations, and as a strategic advisor to a number of public and private companies, Melissa brings a unique combination of policy and technical expertise, as well as board room experience to help others better understand the intersection of government policy, developing technological and industry trends, and economic drivers that impact acquisition and business development strategy in this field.
She publishes regularly on cybersecurity matters affecting companies and countries. Most of her articles can be found at the following website:
Job Titles:
- Senior Research Fellow at the Department of Computer Science
Michael Goldsmith is a Senior Research Fellow at the Department of Computer Science and Worcester College, Oxford. With a background in Formal Methods and Concurrency Theory, Goldsmith was one of the pioneers of automated cryptoprotocol analysis. His research work has investigated a range of Technology Strategy Board and industrial or government-funded projects ranging from highly mathematical semantic models to multidisciplinary research at the social-technical interface. He is an Associate Director of the Cyber Security Centre, Co-Director of the newly launched Centre for Doctoral Training in Cybersecurity and is active in the IAAC Academic Liaison Panel.
Job Titles:
- Managing Director & Registered Lead Auditor at Worldwide Industrial & Systems Engineers
- Managing Director, WWise
Muhammad Ali is the Managing Director & Registered Lead Auditor at Worldwide Industrial & Systems Engineers (WWISE), an organisation he founded in 2009. His impressive qualifications include a Master of Science in Industrial and Systems Engineering from the University of Pretoria, where he is currently a Ph.D. candidate in the same field. Muhammad is a registered Lead Auditor for several international standards with registrations in CQIRCA, SAATCA, PECB, TUV NORD, and SABS. Muhammad Ali's extensive professional journey spans a wide range of industries, including the public sector, telecommunications, automotive, construction, engineering, manufacturing, and various service sectors. Over the past 14 years, he has made significant contributions, assisting over 600 clients in implementing more than 30 different international and national standards. His global influence is apparent, with offices in over 16 different countries and a full-time team of 60+ professionals at WWISE. Utilising cutting-edge technology, Muhammad and his team ensure the efficient implementation of ISO Standards. Notably, he has rescued over 20 clients from failing accreditation or certification audits and has provided training to over 100,000 delegates, including an impressive 75,000+ through E-Learning across 26 countries.
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the National Security Centre of Excellence ( NSCOE Canada )
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- Strategy Associate at the Cyber Security Institute
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- SARAO Research Chair in Radio Astronomy Techniques & Technologies ( RATT ) at Rhodes University
Pria Chetty has over 10 years experience as a technology law and policy advisor to public and private sector organisations, developing country governments and international organisations. In 2007, Pria founded a leading South African technology law firm which was acquired by Pricewaterhouse Coopers in 2011. Following the acquisition, Ms. Chetty was responsible for establishing and heading the technology legal and regulatory service area for the PwC national advisory practice. She left PwC in 2013 and went on to serve as an expert consultant on an ITU project focusing on technical assistance in the area of cybersecurity law and policy for Southern African countries. As a thought leader, Pria has presented at local and international technology conferences including conferences in Egypt, Canada, Senegal and Namibia and published in local and international newspapers, magazines, and journals. She has also published book chapters examining emerging technology law and policy topics with particular emphasis on recommendations for developing countries. Pria currently serves as a member of regional and international expert groups and advisory boards including the BRICS Cybersecurity Expert Group and the Southern African Innovation Network and is an Associate at the Global Cybersecurity Centre at Oxford University. Pria is passionate about facilitating technology law and policy that enables ICT opportunities in Africa.
Job Titles:
- Deputy Vice Chancellor for Strategy, Global and Corporate Affairs, at Stellenbosch University
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- Associate Professor in IT at the Durban University
- Associate Professor in IT at the Durban University of Technology
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- Capitec Chair of Applied AI and Chair of Computational Thinking for AI, Stellenbosch University
Bruce is the Capitec Chair of Applied AI and Chair of Computational Thinking for AI (part of the national Centre for AI Research) - both in the School for Data-Science & Computational Thinking at Stellenbosch University. His research focus is on the design of ethical, correct, fast, secure, and elegant algorithms for solving data-science and AI problems, particularly those relevant to emerging economies of the Global South, such as long-Covid, disease surveillance, and optimization of biocultures. Additionally, these techniques are applicable in securing the cyber vulnerable, critical infrastructure, and decision-making processes (also known as knowledge security).
Job Titles:
- Interim Director of the National Institute for Theoretical and Computational
Job Titles:
- Member of the Conference Committee
Manoj Maharaj has a PhD in Applied Mathematics and is employed at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, where he teaches information systems, specializing in information systems strategy and information security. He has consulted widely in the IT industry and presented many successful workshops on topics ranging from IT Auditing, IT strategy, Information Security, Risk Management and others. He currently serves as non-executive Director on the Board of the Moses Kotane Institute where he chairs the Audit and Risk Committee and on the Board of NEMISA. Both SOEs are tasked with national skills development in the STEM space.
Prof. Maharaj's early research was in General Relativity, specializing in Numerical Relativity. He was part of the National Science Foundation Grand Challenge on Gravitational wave research which has yielded significant results applicable to the ongoing discovery and interpretation of gravitational radiation. His current research interests include ICT4D, information security, strategic information management and enterprise risk management. Manoj has thus far supervised 21 PhD, 14 Masters and 21 MBA students. He has numerous publications that reflect his diverse interests.
He has been employed at the University of KwaZulu-Natal for the past 30 years, where he is now Professor of Information Systems and Technology. He has served the University as Head of School (IST), Executive Director (IST), and as a member of the University Senate and Council.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Conference Committee
Prof. Nirmala Gopal is a criminologist in the Programme of Criminology and Forensic Studies at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. Among her foci of research is ‘hidden' and vulnerable communities as victims of crime, social injustices and discrimination with the aim of promoting justice and fairness for unequal groups in society. She has completed research in school based violence in disadvantaged communities. Her current research study is on understanding how the biological, psychological and social domains of individuals' lives interact to produce chronic illicit drug users or ‘addicts'.
Prof. Gopal an NRF rated researcher has multiple publications in peer reviewed national and international journals. She has engaged in collaborative teaching with the Lulea University of Technology in Sweden between 2010 and 2015. She has presented her scientific results in many national and international conferences both as an invited speaker and as a conference delegate. Her latest research interest is cybercrime which she has showcased in a special peer reviewed journal that is due to be released in November 2018. She has 32 years of teaching experience across the basic and higher education sectors in South Africa. Between the period 2010 and 2018 she headed the ETDP Higher Education and Research chamber. Amongst the many committees that she is a member of is the university of KwaZulu Natal Council.
She has recently edited a Special Edition of Acta Criminologica a Southern African journal on Cybercrime. Some of the articles showcased debates on: Cybercrime, cybersurveillance and state surveillance in South Africa, Cybercrime, politics and their significance in the internationalisation of policing : perspectives of academics and practitioners, the Cybersecurity Dilemma : considerations for investigations in the Dark Web, Public perceptions of cybersecurity : a South African context, On-line/off-line interactions : social media and vulnerability to cyberbullying in a Cape Town case study and Contextualising social engineering through criminological theorising. In addition, she has concluded a national study entitled: Cybercrime - Risks to South Africa. She has a keen interest in the field of cybercrime/security especially through a human lens.
Job Titles:
- Cyber Policy Lead at the UK 's Office to the African Union
Sam Hall is the Cyber Policy Lead at the UK's Office to the African Union. He is also a member of the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office (FCDO) Africa Cyber Network, and is based in Addis Ababa.
Sam works to increase cooperation and partnership between the UK and the AU commission, member states, and other regional organisations in the fields of cyber and technology. Sam started his government career at the UK's Department for International Development (now part of FCDO), working on both security and technology issues.
He then worked as policy advisor on a range of international and foreign policy issues at the UK Cabinet Office before returning to the FCDO.
Job Titles:
- Manager of MANCOSA School of Information and Digital Technology
Zubin Chagpar is responsible for Amazon Web Services' public sector business in the Middle East and Africa. He has two decades of experience working in various roles for leading technology companies. Zubin earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Western Ontario and an MBA from IE Business School. He is a former faculty advisor for Wharton Business School's Global Consulting Practicum and a current adjunct professor at IE Business School where he teaches rapid prototyping. He is an active investor in start-ups and curates global start-up accelerator Techstars' Start-up Digest, a weekly newsletter on start-ups with 50,000 subscribers. Zubin is a former board member at ISACA, the world's largest global professional organization focused on Cybersecurity and IT corporate governance. Key accomplishments during his tenure included the diligence and acquisition of the Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) Institute from Carnegie Mellon, the development of an enterprise strategy and sales team, the development of a policy outreach strategy, the approval of a China entry strategy, and the release of a new lab based virtual environment for cybersecurity learning, CSX.
In his position at AWS, Zubin is executing on the strategy and team recruitment for AWS' Middle East and Africa business directed towards public sector including governments, education, healthcare, state-owned enterprises, and NGOs. His team is focusing on implementing solutions to address high youth unemployment, economy diversification, improve education and healthcare, mitigate cyber threats, and enable innovation by leveraging AWS cloud and AWS' partner network.