Ciaran Martin

Professor Ciaran Martin, CB, joined SANS Institute in January 2023 as Director of SANS CISO Network and Summits EMEA. Respected as a world leader among public authorities for cybersecurity, he is the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre’s (NCSC) founder and former head.

Ciaran's belief in the collaboration of government and industry to enhance cybersecurity makes him as an ideal lead for today’s Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs).

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A 23-year veteran of the UK Government, Ciaran has held senior positions at HM Treasury and the Cabinet Office, as well as six and a half years on the board of the NCSC. Ciaran is able to offer SANS and its global community a unique perspective on successfully managing global cyber threats at a national level.

He 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.