Centre for Secure Information Technologies (CSIT) - Phase 3

网络攻击，如最近对太阳风公司、殖民地管道公司和维亚萨特公司的攻击，正在以惊人的速度扩大。弹性网络安全技术对于确保社会能够安全和自信地采用新的数字技术至关重要。随着我们的世界在公用事业、旅游、医疗保健、教育和商业方面的数字化连接越来越多，以及人工智能、网络物理基础设施和天基实体商业化的使用越来越多，新的安全漏洞也在不断出现。这对于新型网络安全解决方案和安全技术供应链来说，为研究、创新和经济影响提供了关键机会。CSIT总部设在贝尔法斯特女王大学，是网络安全的全球研究和创新中心，也是英国网络安全研究的创新和知识中心（IKC）。因此，CSIT处于有利地位，可以做出进一步的重大贡献，维护英国的国际研究声誉，提高其经济和商业竞争力。通过其独特的开放式创新模式与值得信赖的行业合作伙伴，CSIT正在开拓研究和创新，以保护公民和企业并推动经济影响。CSIT独特的创新模式结合了重要的工程和专业服务能力，使其有别于其他网络安全学术研究中心。作为LORCA（DCMS资助的网络安全加速器）的交付合作伙伴，CSIT通过知识转移和产品开发支持了70多家英国网络安全公司的发展。CSIT已在IKC第一阶段和第二阶段成功交付，在未来5年内，我们将巩固和提高我们在国内和国际上的影响力，继续履行我们连接行业的关键角色，政府和学术专业知识，以促进经济增长。在“保护复杂系统”的主题下，CSIT将研究和开发新技术，作为一个核心点，加速和促进为英国网络安全行业带来更广泛利益的颠覆性商机。这将使CSIT能够在网络安全的新兴领域开展新的研究活动，包括半导体芯片安全，安全和弹性网络物理基础设施，保护机器学习，以及将空间安全作为新的部门重点，旨在吸引新的资金来推动这些领域的合作研究和创新。为了提高我们的影响力，CSIT将与上述一个或多个研究领域的行业合作伙伴建立影响力中心，以拟议的“网络人工智能技术中心”为模型，CSIT将与八家网络安全技术公司合作，共同开发新的解决方案，以应对共同的挑战。我们保守估计，CSIT 3的300万英镑投资可能有助于在英国各地释放高达1070万英镑的经济影响力，通过研究项目创造就业机会，支持英国各地的经济集群，为初创企业和规模化企业提供工程支持，以及通过与英国潜在投资者的公众参与。CSIT 3未来5年的目标包括：（a）1200万英镑的公共研究和创新资金;（B）90万英镑的行业会员费;（c）至少5个CSIT研究中成功的翻译和知识产权活动的例子;（d）10个资助的行业-学术合作项目;以及（e）1个影响力中心。根据CSIT的过往记录，我们完全期望在这些目标之外产生额外的影响，并进一步加强英国作为网络安全研究和创新全球领导者的声誉。

Cyber-attacks such as those recently perpetrated on Solarwinds, Colonial Pipeline and Viasat are scaling at an alarming rate. Resilient cyber security technologies are vital to ensure that society can safely and confidently adopt new digital technologies. As our world becomes increasingly digitally connected for utilities, travel, healthcare, education, and commerce, and with the increasing use of artificial intelligence, cyber-physical infrastructure and the commercialisation of space-based entities, new security vulnerabilities are also emerging. This for novel cyber security solutions and secure technology supply chains presents key opportunities for research, innovation and economic impact. Based at Queen's University Belfast, CSIT is a global research and innovation hub for cyber security, and the UK's Innovation and Knowledge Centre (IKC) for cyber security research. CSIT is therefore in a strong position to make further and significant contributions, maintaining the UK's international research reputation and enhancing its economic and business competitiveness. Through its unique open innovation model with trusted industry partners, CSIT is pioneering research and innovation to protect citizens and businesses and drive economic impact. CSIT's unique model of innovation incorporates a significant engineering and professional services capability differentiating it from other cyber security academic research centres. As a delivery partner of LORCA, the DCMS funded cyber security accelerator, CSIT supported the growth of 70+ UK cyber security companies through knowledge transfer and product development.CSIT has successfully delivered during IKC Phases 1 and 2, and over the next 5 years we will consolidate and raise our level of impact nationally and internationally, continuing to fulfil our key role linking industry, government and academic expertise to promote economic growth. Under the theme of "Securing Complex Systems", CSIT will research and develop new technologies, acting as a nucleating point to accelerate and promote disruptive business opportunities that arise for the wider benefit of the UK cybersecurity industry. This will enable CSIT to seed new research activity in emerging areas of cyber security including, Semiconductor Chip Security, Secure and Resilient Cyber-Physical Infrastructure, Securing Machine Learning, as well as targeting Space Security as a new sectoral focus, with the aim of attracting new funding to drive collaborative research and innovation in these areas.To raise our level of impact, CSIT will build Hubs of Impact with industry partners in one or more of the research areas identified above, modelled on the proposed 'Cyber-AI Technologies Hub' in which CSIT will partner with eight cyber security technology companies to collaborate on the development of new solutions to shared challenges. We conservatively estimate that the £3M investment for CSIT3 could help to unlock up to £10.7M in economic impact across the UK, facilitated by job creation through research projects, support for economic clusters across the UK, engineering support for start-ups and scale-ups, and through public engagement with potential investors to the UK. CSIT3 targets over the next 5 years include: (a) £12M in public research and innovation funding; (b) £900k in industry membership fees; (c) at least 5 examples of successful translation and IP activity from CSIT research; (d) 10 funded industry-academic collaborative projects; and (e) 1 Hub of Impact. Based on CSIT's track record, we fully expect to deliver additional impact beyond these targets and further strengthen the UK's reputation as a global leader in cyber security research and innovation.