We invite proposals for track sessions and research papers, policy briefs or analyses, or explorations of any of the many dimensions of cybersecurity capacity, including from legal, educational, standard setting, defence, cultural and societal, technical, policy, and international perspectives. While open to all areas of importance to cybersecurity capacity building and any region, a particular focus of this year’s annual conference will be on implications of cybersecurity capacity for development in Africa. Illustrative topics of interest might include, but are not limited to:

  • Experiences in building national cybersecurity capacities in African countries
  • The impact of cybersecurity attacks to governments, public agencies, and public services
  • Challenges for international cooperation on cybersecurity
  • Enhancing technical cybersecurity functions on local or global levels
  • Building a cybersecurity culture and mindset
  • Structural approaches to support capacity, such as in the formation of computer emergency response teams
  • Social, cultural and local shaping of cybersecurity education and solutions
  • Trends in national, regional, or international cybersecurity capacity maturity
  • Roles of international agreements and political forums on cybersecurity
  • Emerging issues around digital technologies for development
  • Cybersecurity consequences of digital transformation and emerging technologies
  • Trends in the nature and challenges of cybercrime
  • Responsible state behaviour in cyberspace
  • Equitable access and divides in cybersecurity technologies, services, and capacities
  • Critical perspectives on data localization, data protection, and national autonomy
  • Digital/Cyber Forensic

Submission Guidelines:

  1. We invite research contributions, which have not been previously published, in the format of an extended abstract:
  • A PDF file of 500-1,000 words should be submitted to <c3sa@uct.ac.za>
  • The extended abstract must include the proposed title, the research question, the methodology, and the expected results and conclusions
  • The extended abstract should be in English, using an accepted citation style, such as Harvard, or APA
  • All submissions will be subject to peer review and authors will be given the opportunity to improve their contributions based on peer comments
  • If accepted, the authors will be expected to revise and extend their manuscripts for the conference depending on the state and nature of the research:
    • Completed papers: 5,000 – 7,500 words
    • Policy briefs: 1,500 – 2,500 words
    • Posters: 500 – 1,000 words
  1. We invite track proposalson topics of interest on cybersecurity capacity:
  • A PDF file of about 500 words should be submitted to < c3sa@uct.ac.za >
  • The track proposal should include the proposed track title, why this track is relevant for cybersecurity capacity, the name of tentative speakers to be invited, and the name of the responsible person(s) who would be involved in the organisation of the track session
  • The track proposal should be in English, using an accepted citation style, such as Harvard, or APA
  • All submissions will be considered by the program chairs who will provide feedback according to its quality and feasibility
  • If accepted, the responsible person(s) will liaise with the conference co-chairs on the organisation of the track proposal, respecting the conference deadlines

Contributors will be notified within approximately 4 weeks of the submission deadline as to the status of their proposals. Detailed instructions on the presentations and tracks will be sent with the acceptance notification.

 

At least one co-author of any accepted paper, policy brief, or poster should attend the conference in person to present their research. However, remote access to the conference will be available for those not presenting their paper.

On the basis of completed papers, the conference organisers will explore the publication in a special edition of an academic or policy research journal.

Important Dates

Conference:                                        2st – 3nd November 2022

For any queries about this call, please email Co-Chairs Wallace Chigona (Wallace.chigona@uct.ac.za), Patricia Esteve-Gonzalez (patricia.esteve-gonzalez@cs.ox.ac.uk) and Carsten Rudolph (carsten.rudolph@monash.edu) with “Submission Conference on Cybersecurity Capacity” as your email subject.

The Constellation and Organisation of this Conference

The Cybersecurity Capacity Centre for Southern Africa (C3SA), which is hosting this annual conference, is part of the global constellation of regional cybersecurity capacity research centres which includes the Global Cyber Security Capacity Centre (GCSCC) at the University of Oxford and the Oceania Cyber Security Centre (OCSC) in Melbourne, Australia. C3SA is a consortium of Research ICT Africa (RIA), the Department of Information Systems (DIS) at the University of Cape Town (UCT), the Global Cyber Security Capacity Centre (GCSCC) at the University of Oxford, and the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI).