Cyber Security for Healthcare 2026

A one-day conference for Healthcare Providers, Healthtechs / Corporates, and academics in the health sector, focusing on cyber security

The Cybersecurity for Health conference will address cybersecurity challenges, upcoming legislation, and explore best-practise and cutting-edge solutions tailored to the healthcare sector.

It is relevant for:

• Healthtech innovators, Cyber Security Vendors, Technology companies, Medtech, Pharma and Life Science companies, Hospital IT departments, and healthcare administrators.
• Policy makers, investors, and academic researchers in health technology and cybersecurity.

The EU Commission (Jan' 2025) launched a "comprehensive action plan to improve the cybersecurity of hospitals and healthcare providers across the EU. As healthcare systems increasingly become targets of cyber and ransomware attacks, this plan aims to strengthen the security of our health systems. In 2023 alone, EU countries reported 309 significant cybersecurity incidents targeting the healthcare sector – more than any other critical sector. As healthcare providers increasingly use digital health records, the risk of data-related threats continues to rise."

A Cyber Ireland article noted "The last three years have seen some really worrying milestones. The costs of a data breach in the healthcare industry continue to rise. In 2023, the average cost reached $10.93 million. The frequency is also increasing, with one report noting a 60% increase in phishing attacks between 2022 and 2023, with healthcare being the primary target of these attempts."

The conference is organised by the Connected Health & Wellbeing Cluster (DkIT) and Cyber Ireland Cluster (MTU), with collaboration from HIRANI, and Trend AI.

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June 30th, 7:30pm: Pre-Event (optional) Meet-Up / Finger Food @ Gateway Hotel, Dundalk (discounted accommodation rate available for attendees - see FAQ section below ).

July 1st

9:00-9:30 AM
Registration & Networking / Coffee & Scones

9:30 AM - 9:40AM
Welcome & Opening Remarks

9:40 AM - 10:00 AM
Keynote Address: "The Future of Cybersecurity in Healthcare"

• Insights into emerging threats and trends in healthcare cybersecurity and how organizations can stay ahead of the curve. Examples of Innovation.

• Key statistics and case studies highlighting the impact of these threats on patient safety and organizational resilience.

Session 1
Current State of Play

10:00 AM - 10:20 AM
"How Innovators and Cyber Security can work with the HSE"
(Marie Lalor, GM responsible for Cyber Strategy & Programmes, CISO Office, HSE)

What standards (technical, regulatory, commercial) are required to work with the HSE on cyber security? What are the HSE expectations in relation to CMMI, NIS2 etc?

How does HSE work with:

- Healthtech / Medtech Innovators

- CyberSecurity companies

10:20 AM - 10:40 AM
Breaking the Bot: Hacking a Healthcare AI
(Viktor Spetnijs, Solutions Engineer, (Trend AI))

A walkthrough of prompt injection and related attacks against a purpose-built healthcare AI holding patient records, first showing how an attacker can pull that data out, then running the same attacks again with guardrails in place to show how they're stopped.

10:40 AM - 10:55 AM
'Ethical Hacking' with Mini Digi Hub / 'Hacker Shack'

Attendees will have an option to book one of three additional 20-minute off-site workshops during lunch(max of 15 attendees per workshop).

Session Objectives:

• Understand how easily data can be intercepted on insecure networks
• See how personal data appears across the internet (OSINT)
• Recognise modern social engineering risks (including AI)
• Leave with 2 – 3 practical actions to improve your security

10: 55 - 11:05 AM
Cyber Security Special Interest Group – Introductions

The Cybersecurity for Health Special Interest Group (CyberHealth SIG) aims to provide a forum for organisations across the healthcare, health-tech and cybersecurity sectors in Ireland to share knowledge, identify gaps and opportunities, and strengthen cybersecurity best practices across Ireland’s healthcare sector. It is managed by the Connected Health & Wellbeing Cluster and Cyber Ireland, and will unite organisations from both sectors- hospitals and healthcare providers, health-tech, med-tech and cybersecurity companies, regulatory authorities and government agencies.

11: 05 - 11:25 AM
Coffee Break & Expo

• Connect with peers and wider health & cyber ecosystem.

Session 2

AI in Healthcare & CyberSecurity / AI Governance Frameworks

11:25 AM - 12:00 PM
PANEL DISCUSSION

- HSE Technology & Transformation; Wayne Kierans

- Palo Aloto Networks; Enda McGahern

- Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA)

• Securing AI in clinical environments & digital health products
• Security risks from shadow AI to agents
• AI-driven cyber defence for healthcare
• AI-enabled cyberattacks in healthcare (Deepfake phishing)

12:00 PM - 12:20 PM |
Claude Mythos – The Good, The Bad, The Ugly****.****
(Robert Kehoe, Smarttech24/7)

• Predictions: What the future will look like?
• The long tail of risk posed by Mythos
• Practical steps and actions;

- 3rd party vendor management

- Contractual SLAs

12:20 PM - 12:40 PM
Supply Chain & Third-Party Risk -
(Anita Finnegan, Santegic)

• How should vendors comply with NIS2? / Managing Muiti-Vendors.
• Benefits of enhanced stakeholder transparency and trust.
• Cross-border data risk (Ireland–EU–US ecosystems)

12:40 PM - 13:00 PM
”Hospital CyberSecurity” – Best Practise Case Study

13:00 - 14:00 PM
Lunch / Hacker Shack Workshops / Networking

Session 3

Future Threats & Technology

14:00 PM - 14:20 PM
Threats to the Healthcare Sector
(Simon Walsh, Head of Solutions Engineering UK & Ireland, TrendAI')

A look at why healthcare has become one of the most-targeted critical sectors - the actors, their methods, and what's changed - and how AI is reshaping the threat landscape.

14:20 PM - 14:50 PM
Medical Device & IoMT Security -
(Panel Discussion)

Panel Chairperson: Kevin O'Gorman, SW Director - BD

Kim Moylan - Cyber Security Specialist,Compliance & Technical Support**,** National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

• IoMT devices expand attack surface significantly
• Securing connected devices (infusion pumps, imaging, wearables)
• Software Bill of Materials (SBOM) & lifecycle risk
• Procurement standards for secure devices

14:50 PM - 15:10 PM
Ransomware & Crisis Response
(Panel Discussion)

David McNamara; Founder of CommSec Cyber Security

• Why ransomware remains the #1 healthcare threat globally
• Walk through of a cyber incident in healthcare setting
• Board-level decision making
• Crisis communications
• Legal / Regulator’s perspective

15:10 PM - 15:25 PM
Charities / Voluntary Organisations & Cyber Security
(Sean Brady, CoFounder - CloudAssist)

"In Ireland, the charity and voluntary sector is a massive pillar of the healthcare system, delivering roughly one-quarter of acute hospital care, two-thirds of disability services, and up to 80% of residential care. The vast majority of these services are funded by taxpayers, but are managed and operated by not-for-profit organizations rather than the State" (healthmanager.ie).

The need for Information Protection to safeguard against data leakage to LLMs using AI Governance, and to protect against insider risk security breaches by treating AI Agents like High Privileged Individuals while implementing Phishing Resistant FIDO authentication to prevent malicious or rogue AI Agents from accessing PII. This subject will be told through a use case of a Section 38 charity company who delivers public health or social care services to the HSE under Section 38 of the Health Act 2004.

• Integration with HSE & Cyber Security
• 'Section 38' Hospitals & Cyber Security

15:25 PM - 15:55 PM - 'International Collaboration and Cyber Security'

Panel Discussion

• Dr Paschal McCloskey****,****Head of Project Delivery, Health Frontiers – Technology Innovation Centre.
• Professor Paul Miller, Professor in Artificial Intelligence Security,Director, Momentum One Zero,Deputy Director, Centre for Secure Information Technologies (CSIT), QUB-Belfast.

Supported by a €9.1 million investment from the Special EU Programmes Body through the PEACEPLUS Programme, the Health Frontiers project is set to accelerate progress in digital health and MedTech innovation. HF-TIC unites 11 research and clinical organisations across three regions, alongside 25 MedTech SMEs. They include Ulster University (Lead Institution), DkIT, DCU, UCD, ATU, Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre (DHI) and University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) in Scotland, the Southern, Belfast, and Northern Health & Social Care Trusts (NI) , and Health Innovation Research Alliance Northern Ireland (HIRANI).

The €10m PeacePlus 'One Health' project is led by Catalyst with partners including Queen’s University Belfast, Atlantic Technological University, University of Galway, Tyndall National Institute, and HIRANI. ONEHEALTH brings together academic institutions, SMEs, and policy leaders to design and deliver innovative health solutions at scale, with a specific priority on AI and Digital Helath solutions.

15:55 PM - 16:05 PM - Summary / Q&A / Close

16:05 PM - 16:45 PM - Networking / Meetings / 'Hacker Shack' with MDL