In this fascinating episode, Ciaran discusses his unorthodox journey into cyber security and his role in establishing the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). He also highlights the importance of technical expertise in governmental policy-making and also dives into the world of threats that we face from Nation State actors such as Russia, North Korea and China.

Professor Ciaran Martin

Professor Ciaran Martin, CB, is a Professor of Practice at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford, as well as a managing director at Paladin Capital and the holder of several other advisory roles in private sector cyber security. He writes and speaks frequently on cyber security in major outlets across the world, and was named on of the most influential people in European technology by Politico in 2022.

From 2014 until 2020 he set up and then led the United Kingdom’s world-leading National Cyber Security Centre, within the intelligence agency GCHQ on whose board he sat.

This was the culmination of a 23 year career in UK public service which saw him serve in senior roles in national security, constitutional and economic policy.