Tuesday 3 May 2022, 11am-12noon (BST)

Pete Cooper is Deputy Director of Cyber Defence within the Government Security Group in the UK Cabinet Office, overlooking the whole of the Government sector. He is responsible for the Government cybersecurity strategy, standards, and policies and for responding to serious or cross-government cyber incidents. With a diverse military, private-sector, and government background, he has worked on everything ranging from cyber operations, global cybersecurity strategies, advising on the nature of state vs state cyber conflict to leading cybersecurity change with groundbreaking, collaborative work across industry, public sector, and the global hacker community, including founding and leading the Aerospace Village at DEF CON. A fast jet pilot turned cyber operations advisor who left the military in 2016 and founded the UK’s first multi-disciplinary cyber strategy competition, the Cyber 9/12 UK Strategy Challenge.

Pete has a passion for tackling national and international cybersecurity challenges through better collaboration, diversity, and innovative partnerships. He has a Post Grad in Cyberspace Operations from Cranfield University, is a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the Cyber Statecraft Initiative of the Scowcroft Centre for Strategy and Security at the Atlantic Council, and is a Visiting Senior Research Fellow in the Department of War Studies, King’s College London.

In this conversation with Pete, we explored his journey and thoughts on leading impactful change and tackling cyber security challenges at scale. We also discussed in depth the UK Government Cyber Security Strategy which was launched in January this year and which he was instrumental in creating.

Martin Smith MBE (info), Chairman & Founder, The SASIG, in conversation with Pete Cooper MSc FRAeS, Deputy Director Cyber Defence, Cabinet Office