Cork|Sec 159

NOTE: Moved from September 8th to 1st

Running since June 2013, every month we have 1-2 talks focused on Security or Technology - followed by socialising with like minded people

• You can find out exactly what to expect about the night and the venue on the What We're About section of our Meetup page. Past talk details can be found the "Past Events" section.
• All people with any sort of an interest or level of knowledge in Security, Hacking and Emerging Technology are more than welcome to attend and feel free to bring like minded colleagues and friends.

CorkSec is made possible through generous sponsorship from our Platinum Sponsor TrendAI, Gold Sponsor CyberSkills , as well as our Silver and Bronze Sponsors featured prominently on the night.

Our talks come from our community so if you have an idea for a topic (anything for 10-60 minutes) please email us at **DefconCork@gmail.com** . Whether you are an experienced presenter, or presenting for your first time - CorkSec is a great venue for it - and we are happy to help you prepare and mentor you.

Doors open at 19:00 with talks starting at 19:15. Talks below

TALK 1: Digital Twins: A Double Insecurity – Securing and Threatening Cyber-Physical Systems by Dr Sabah Suhail
he convergence of information technology and operational technology in cyber-physical systems (CPSs) has led to highly interconnected and autonomous systems. However, this integration also introduces new attack vectors, posing significant risks to social, economic, and business sectors. Securing CPSs requires evaluating both system functionality and security without disrupting ongoing operations. A promising approach to enhancing CPS security is to leverage digital twins as security enablers. A digital twin is a virtual representation of a physical object or process, replicating its attributes, services, and interconnections throughout the system life cycle. With a continuously synchronized feedback loop, data flows from CPS to the digital twin, while assessments, predictions, optimizations, and insights flow back to the physical system for improved decision-making. In the context of ‘security through digital twins’, digital twins can be utilized for intrusion detection, cyber deception, and incident response. However, the ‘security of digital twins’ is also a critical concern. If compromised, a high-fidelity digital twin can leak sensitive information, exposing critical process knowledge about the physical system, or trigger cascading failures through feedback loops between the digital and physical spaces. In this talk, I will explore what digital twins are, how they can serve as security enablers for CPSs, what the potential abuse cases of digital twins are, and what research opportunities exist to develop trustworthy digital twins, drawing on examples from my research and industry collaborations.

TALK 2: Beyond Alert Volume: Chess, Cognitive Overload, and SOC Decision-Making by Ioana Macovei
Ioana Macovei is back at CorkSec to share insights from ongoing research into the cognitive life of SOC analysts. The talk will explore alert fatigue and cognitive overload as problems of human pattern recognition, selective attention, and verification - not simply alert volume. How do chess players manage the exponential growth of possible states in complex decision-making?

The talk will also explore what cybersecurity might learn from chess players’ cautious and sceptical approach to uncertain information—while recognising that effective cyber decision-making requires calibrated scepticism, rather than distrusting every message or alert.