Thematic Seminar on the State of Cybersecurity Capabilities for the Demands of the State Government under the National Scientific Programme - Security and Defence

The National and Regional Security Department in relation to the activities planned under the National Scientific Programme - Security and Defence /NSP S&D/ organized a thematic seminar on the State of Cybersecurity Capabilities for the Demands of the State Government.

The Head of the National and Regional Security Department and Coordinator of the NSDP S&D for the UNWE Assoc. Prof. Dr. Noncho Dimitrov opened the event and emphasized: "During this seminar we will present the results of the Programme under task 2.1.3. Research on the Security of Critical Information Systems for the Demands of the State Government.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Noncho Dimitrov presented the National Scientific Programme - Security and Defence /NSP S&D/ and pointed out that the UNWE is a beneficiary of the Programme, which is implemented in partnership with Prof. Tsvetan Lazarov Institute of Defence, G. S. Rakovsky Military Academy, University of Library Studies and Information Technologies, the Centre for National Security and Defence Research at Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, the Academy of the Ministry of Interior, the Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy, Vasil Levsky National Military University and Georgy Benkovsky Higher Air Force School. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Noncho Dimitrov added that the main objectives of the Programme are related to the research, development, and proposal for implementation in practice of conceptual innovative models in the security and defence of the country, including through cybersecurity and cyber defence and targeted research. It is provisioned design, development and proposals for the implementation of innovative management, surveillance, and response systems for national and collective security, including a cybersecurity and cyber defence operations center as well as an in-depth understanding and detailed description of digital models, smart technologies and decision support systems for disasters, emergencies, and crises. Involvement in peer-to-peer scientific networks from abroad and improved interaction between the research and development units and business as well as the development of prototypes of tools and environments for safer virtual communication are also among the activities foreseen under the Programme.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Noncho Dimitrov

Michail Ivanov, Doctoral student at the National and Regional Security Department, presented the results of a study on Scanning the National Cyberspace, which is an analysis of the vulnerabilities of national electronic systems. He outlined that in the course of the study it was found that national electronic systems suffer from numerous security gaps, which in turn means that the exploitation and theft of personal data of Bulgarian citizens is a high probability occurrence.

Dozens of critical breaches exist in the systems of various government institutions accessible via the Internet. There are hundreds of vulnerabilities that, when exploited together could allow attackers to hack the critical infrastructure systems and networks across the country.

The study also provides recommendations to reduce and mitigate risks, such as decommissioning obsolete hardware, collecting critical data in a cyber response headquarters, conducting regular audits of electronic systems, and building and implementing structured processes and policies to manage vulnerabilities.

Eng. Dr. Elitsa Pavlova, Acting Director of the Information Technologies Directorate of UNWE presented the task 1.1.4. Simulation Modeling and System Interaction Scenarios implemented by the UNWE in cooperation with G. S. Rakovsky Military Academy.

The event continued with a fruitful discussion on the State of Cybersecurity Capabilities for the Demands of the State Government, in which took part business representatives. Martin Ivanov, Marketing Specialist at A1 Bulgaria presented how the company takes care of cybersecurity and interacts with the government structures. Georgy Kisyov, Deputy Manager for R&D of Risk Electronics, shared the company's experience in the field of cyber threats and best practices from the country and Europe for dealing with them. Pavlin Kutinchev, co-owner of INFINITY Ltd, an organization dealing with internal security, spoke about the personal security and information leaks.

In the discussion took active part Lect. Ognyan Ognyanov from the National and Regional Security Department and Ivan Gaidarsky, manager and co-owner of INFINITY Ltd.