Technological Impact - Single Session (Cyber Security)

Session Abstract: Our digital world is under siege in ways most people never see. While organisations race to digitise every function of modern life, a vast criminal economy has taken root beneath the visible internet — one that is selling attack tools, buying stolen credentials, and demanding ransoms worth billions of dollars each year.

Ransomware is no longer the domain of lone hackers. It has become a service industry, complete with customer support, affiliate programs, and profit-sharing agreements, operated by groups whose sophistication rivals legitimate technology companies. Behind this ecosystem lies the dark web: an anonymous infrastructure that enables cybercriminals to organise, scale, and evade detection across national borders.

Dr Akbar Hossain will unravel how this shadowy economy actually works — who the threat actors are, what drives them, how ransom payments are laundered through cryptocurrency, and why law enforcement consistently struggles to keep pace. Drawing on research analysing over 150 academic publications and real-world incidents from Colonial Pipeline to the Marks & Spencer breach, this session will show what organisations, policymakers, and individuals must understand to protect themselves in an era where ransomware has become a global socio-technical phenomenon.

Dates: Thursday 4th June.

Time & format: The course will start at 10am, with a coffee/tea break followed by a lively facilitated discussion to answer all your curious questions. The course will finish at 12pm.

Location: We are delighted to be hosting at Foodeast - Haumako, 4 Hanui Road, Tomoana, Hastings 4172.