Riyadh Region Governor Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz opened Wednesday the third Global Cybersecurity Forum (GCF) in Riyadh under the auspices of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
Hosted by the National Cybersecurity Authority and the Saudi Information Technology Company (SITE), the two-day forum was attended by over 150 speakers, industry experts, decision makers, CEOs, and high-level representatives from government and academic sectors, as well as by representatives of prominent international companies from over 120 countries.
In his opening speech, Prince Faisal said that this year’s Forum, carrying the theme “Charting Shared Priorities in Cyberspace”, is held at a time the cybersecurity sector is witnessing rapid developments, which created an urgent need for cooperation to pave the way to prosperity around the world, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
“We are confident that this presence of international expertise, decision makers and specialists from around the world will maximize the forum’s outcomes, and will present the international experience related to vital and strategic topics in the cybersecurity sector, enabling us to secure a safe and reliable cyberspace that stimulates progress, growth, innovation, and prosperity for all people,” the Riyadh Governor added.
National Cybersecurity Authority Governor Eng. Majed Al-Mazyad expressed appreciation for the Saudi leadership’s support for the cybersecurity sector. He said that the Global Cybersecurity Forum is a platform to explore boosting cooperation, unifying efforts, fostering partnerships, and seizing opportunities in the sector to support international efforts to attain cybersecurity and serve communities around the world.
The Forum has become a platform for decision makers, experts and specialists in vital and strategic sector issues that aims to open broad horizons for knowledge transfer and exchange of expertise, and explore opportunities for cooperation.
This year’s Forum mapped shared priorities in cyberspace through 35 dialogue sessions on strategic topics related to cybersecurity, with focus on five sub-themes: Cyberspace amidst polycrisis; Cyber growth unlocked; Across cyber divides; Inside cyber minds; and Emerging cyber horizons.