Peter Kirstein Lecture 2022: Mikko Hyppönen

Peter Kirstein Lecture Series 2022 - The Age of the Cybercrime Unicorn with Mikko Hyppönen.

As connected devices open new opportunities for imagination, they also open new opportunities for online criminals. Organised cybercrime gangs are bigger than ever. The wealth being controlled by the biggest groups is staggering, enabling them to invest more in their attacks.

What do cybercrime unicorns look like? How do they work? Where do they get their money from? Where do they invest it? How do cybercriminals get caught? And what's going to happen next? Mikko Hyppönen will offer his insights into these questions based on his diverse career working as a global cybersecurity practitioner.

Event flyer

The Age of the Cybercrime Unicorn

About the event

UCL Computer Science had the pleasure of hosting the 3rd edition of the annual Peter Kirstein Lecture series. The lecture took place at UCL Cruciform Lecture Theatre on Friday 29th April 2022. It was a hybrid event and the first time we were able to invite guests to attend in person, since 2019.

We were delighted to have Mikko as this year's guest speaker. The lecture was introduced by Professor Steve Hailes; Head of Department at UCL Computer Science, along with Professor Lorenzo Cavallaro of UCL Information Security Research Group, who also led the Q&A with Mikko.

The lecture and Q&A was followed by a panel discussion where we were privileged to be joined by experts in the field of Cyber Security. The panel was chaired by Madeline Carr; Professor of Global Politics and Cyber Security and Director of the UK-wide Research Institute in Sociotechnical Cyber Security (RISCS).

A Vote of Thanks was offered by Professor Mirco Musolesi, UCL Intelligent Social Systems Lab and Turing Fellow.

The lecture and panel event was followed by an afternoon tea reception.

Panelists

Mikko Hyppönen
	Mikko Hyppönen has been working with information security for 30 years. Mikko was selected as the Cybersecurity Person Of The Year in 2020 by CISO Magazine. He has dedicated his career to combatting security threats, tracking online crime and sharing his work with the world - including his creation of Hyppönen law, which states, "If it's smart, it's vulnerable." He is a widely regarded security expert who has written on his research for The New York Times, Wired and Scientific American. His newest book will be published by Wiley in August 2022. Hyppönen's TED Talk has been seen by 1.5 million people and translated to 40 languages. In addition to his ongoing research, Hyppönen also serves as curator for the Malware Museum at the Internet Archive.
Gordon Corera
	Gordon Corera has been a Security Correspondent for BBC News since June 2004. In that role he covers national security issues including cyber security, counter-terrorism and espionage for BBC TV, Radio and Online. He was previously a foreign affairs reporter on the Today programme, BBC Radio 4's flagship news programme. He is the author of a number of books, including Intercept: The Secret History of Computers and Spies and most recently, Russians Among Us: Sleeper Cells, Ghost Stories and the Hunt for Putin’s spies.
Craig Jones
	With 29 years of law enforcement experience, Craig Jones leads INTERPOL’s Cybercrime Directorate and the Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) for its Global Cybercrime Programme. Aimed at reducing the global impact of cybercrime and protecting communities for a safer world, the Programme focuses on three core pillars of cybercrime threat response, cybercrime operations, and cyber capabilities development for law enforcement worldwide.
Gloria Laycock
	Gloria Laycock is currently Professor Emeritus of Crime Science at UCL. She has a BSc and PhD in psychology from UCL. She established and headed the Home Office Police Research Group and was founding Director of the UCL Jill Dando Institute and the Community Policing and Police Science Institute in Abu Dhabi. Gloria has carried out research and development in prisons, policing and crime prevention and has acted as a consultant and trainer on policing matters around the world. She was Director of research supporting the What Works Centre for Crime Reduction from 2013-2016. She was awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours 2008 for services to crime policy.