Twenty-five years on from the signing of the pivotal peace accord, Northern Ireland’s flourishing cyber ecosystem has one of the highest concentrations of cybersecurity businesses worldwide. Credit: MediaProduction / Getty Images The Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement played an integral role in enabling Northern Ireland’s growth as a global cybersecurity hub, according to UK government chiefs speaking at the CyberUK conference in Belfast. The Good Friday Agreement was signed on Good Friday, April 10, 1998, following three decades of conflict known as the Troubles. In introduced several new power-sharing arrangements designed to install peace, transforming political and economic life in Northern Ireland. Twenty-five years on from the signing of the pivotal peace accord, Northern Ireland’s flourishing cyber ecosystem has one of the highest concentrations of cybersecurity businesses worldwide – estimated to add £437 million in value to the UK’s economy by 2030.The scale of progress of Northern Ireland’s cyber ecosystem is significant, with over 100 companies with cybersecurity operations – ranging from startups to multinational corporations – based in Belfast alone. Northern Ireland has strong future ambitions too, including plans to deliver 5,000 new cybersecurity professionals by the end of the decade.In February, the UK government announced £18.9 million investment in Northern Ireland’s cybersecurity sector, including the creation of a new Cyber-AI Hub at the Centre for Secure Information Technologies (CSIT) in Belfast, creating jobs and supporting the research and development of AI-enabled cybersecurity projects. Northern Ireland is also the top investment location for US cybersecurity firms.Northern Ireland’s cybersecurity status built upon foundations of peace Such advancements have been made possible by the transformative effect the Good Friday Agreement has had on Northern Ireland’s economy and society, wrote the UK National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). Its future success will be reliant on continuing to leverage its strong connections between industry and education, as well as the world-class research and excellence at institutions such as Queen’s University Belfast and Ulster University – for which the Agreement paved the way. “The prosperous economy you see in Northern Ireland today has been built on the foundations of the peace process,” said Lindy Cameron, CEO of NCSC. “Northern Ireland has become an indispensable partner in the NCSC’s work to make the UK the safest place to work and live online.”Northern Ireland is becoming a byword for cutting edge technology, connectivity, and innovation, added Chris Heaton-Harris, secretary of state for Northern Ireland. “The UK government remains committed to investing in Northern Ireland’s continuing prosperity and the great opportunities that exist here.” Related content brandpost Shifting security left: DevSecOps meets virtualization By Anthony Ricco, CMO of Corellium. 01 Jul 2023 4 mins Security news analysis Attackers add hacked servers to commercial proxy networks for profit Proxyjacking allows attackers to sell unknowing victims' unused network bandwidth. By Lucian Constantin 30 Jun 2023 4 mins Cybercrime news Command-and-control framework PhonyC2 attributed to Iran’s Muddywater group PhonyC2 was used to exploit the log4j vulnerability in the Israeli software SysAid, the attack against Israel’s Technion institute, and the ongoing attack against the PaperCut print management software. By Apurva Venkat 30 Jun 2023 4 mins Advanced Persistent Threats Cyberattacks Vulnerabilities news First state-sponsored cyberattack against UK government revealed two decades later Rare insight marks the 20th anniversary of a state-backed malware attack on a UK government department. By Michael Hill 30 Jun 2023 3 mins Cyberattacks Government Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe