Synergia Conclave : definitely the best – MK Narayanan

The Synergia Conclave – Security 360 was conducted from 17th to 19th November, 2017 in Bangalore, Karnataka. It was based on the theme ‘Reimagining Security – 360’, where experts from security, intelligence, army, academia, media and other domains from across the world shared their views.

"Post my official career, attending seminars is one of my pre-occupations. And three of the most iconic conferences that I have been attending in the past few years, The Munich Security Conference, The World Policy Conference & The World Knowledge Forum, I want to complement Mr. Tobby Simon to say that perhaps, this is the best conference that I have attended in terms of preparation, planning, programming, etc." - MK Narayanan, Former NSA to Government of India, Governor of West Bengal and Director of Intelligence Bureau. 

Background 

Cyber security issues today should occupy top billing in the hierarchy of international security issues. Recent incidents of cyber terrorism, cyber espionage, cybercrime and the use of non-state actors and state sponsored proxies in cyber space have jeopardized international security. In addition, states are increasingly worried about malicious activities that could undermine national security. Accordingly, Cyber Diplomacy that is diplomacy that deals with emerging issues of cyber security is a new arm of any country’s diplomatic arsenal. 

Synergia Foundation organized the fifth edition of the Synergia Conclave on 17 November 2017 in a bid to address these very concerns. Security 360 aimed to bring together global industry leaders, strategic security practitioners, policy makers, media and businesses on a single platform to provide a 360-degree perspective on geo-political threats with a focus on asymmetric threats. Keynote presentations and panel discussions provided participants a rare chance to interact with and learn from leading security & cyber experts and solution providers from around the world.

Synergia Foundation is a strategic think tank that works on real time primary information to pursue high quality & impartial research; drawing on a global network of resources, to offer the most comprehensive analysis and impactful solutions.

Analysis

The Synergia Conclave – Security 360 was conducted from November 17th to November 19th, 2017 in Bangalore, Karnataka. It was based on the theme ‘Reimagining Security – 360’, where experts from security, intelligence, army, academia, media and other domains from across the world shared their views.

The inaugural session was attended by some of the biggest luminaries from the field. The experts who were present were - HE Margaret Alva, HE M.K. Narayanan, Former NSA to Government of India, Governor of West Bengal and Director of Intelligence Bureau, Shekhar Dutt, Former Governor of Chhattisgarh, Former Deputy NSA & Defense Secretary, Government of India, HE Shyamal Datta, Former Governor of Nagaland and Director of the Intelligence Bureau, Padma Bhushan Paul Raj AVSM, VSM, Professor Emeritus, Stanford University; Recipient of the Marconi Prize (2014) & IEEE Alexander Graham Bell Medal (2011), Gaurav Gupta IAS, Principal Secretary – IT, BT & Tourism, Government of Karnataka, Dr. Subhash Chandra Khuntia IAS, Chief Secretary, Government of Karnataka and Tobby Simon, President of Synergia Foundation.

Sharing a few words at the inauguration, the invitees from the Government of Karnataka spoke about how important the topics being highlighted in the conclave were to the city of Bangalore. The presence of a secure and stable environment is invaluable to all aspects of economic development. Dr. Subhash Chandra Khuntia reminded the gathering that ‘security issues are not bi-polar as they used to be a decade ago. He expressed a high expectation that the ‘galaxy of eminent people attending this conclave would be able to suggest a new way of thinking about security. The coming of AI, robotics – with the potential to reduce human workforce requirement was also a new development that needed special focus and ways of navigation. Gaurav Gupta highlighted the specific interest that Bangalore has – with so many world leaders in technology and development having their Innovation Centres located in the city, and 13 lakh people directly employed in this sector in Bangalore, the digital interconnectedness that is shared now between everything that is digital creates vulnerability, and hence heightens the need to be aware of the security issues, especially in digital security.

Many of the guests echoed each other in their expression that the theme of the Conclave – Reimaging Security was extremely apt and appropriate. But it was the words of HE M.K. Narayanan that echoed precisely what many of the delegates were saying in different ways. “I have been to many, many conferences all around the world”, he said, “but this one is, by far, the best.” The inaugural session in every way set a perfect tone to usher in the beginning of a scintillating 3-day event.

Assessment

Our assessment is that the threat to digital security is growing and mutating continuously. While e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and data offer opportunities for profitable businesses, the environment urgently needs to augment digital trust, active defence and design a resilient architecture.