The Charter of Trust is a non-profit alliance of leading global companies and organisations from various sectors, based on 10 principles, working together to make the digital world of tomorrow a safer place.

Strengthening Global Cybersecurity: Charter of Trust’s Thematic Dinner at MSC
At this year’s Munich Security Conference, the Charter of Trust hosted its annual Thematic Dinner, focusing on the theme: “From Cyber Fences to Defences: Reversing Cyber Policy Fragmentation.”

With cybersecurity at the forefront of global security discussions, the event brought together high-ranking representatives from NATO, the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA), the European External Action Service, national cybersecurity authorities, military leaders, and parliamentary officials. Their expertise contributed to a series of insightful discussions on strengthening international cyber resilience.

Key Takeaways from the Discussion

The increasing threat of cyber-attacks and disinformation poses a significant risk to economies and democracies. There is an urgent need for a coordinated and robust global response to mitigate these threats and establish clear consequences for malicious cyber activities.

Public-private cooperation plays a crucial role in cyber defence. The private sector possesses essential technological capabilities that must be leveraged to enhance the security of information systems, economic infrastructure, and democratic institutions.

Artificial intelligence is emerging as a critical battleground in cybersecurity. Protecting critical infrastructure with quantum-cryptographic security will be essential to counter evolving cyber threats effectively.

This event marked the conclusion of an exceptionally productive month for the Charter of Trust, which included:

This dinner was the perfect end for a very successful month in which the Charter of Trust held its Board of Directors meeting electing new co-chairs, the Security by Default working group published its sixth report (available on our website) and held a high-level panel discussion at Hashtag#MCSC, and several CISOs and CSOs from the Charter of Trust Partners published a playbook talking about cybersecurity and hybrid threats.

Cyber Resilience Took Center Stage at Munich Cyber Security Conference 2025

The Charter of Trust is proud to have organized a panel discussion on cyber resilience at this year's edition of the MCSC, bringing together some of the brightest minds in cybersecurity for a high-impact panel discussion: "A Practitioner’s Guide to Resilient Infrastructure Today & Tomorrow."

A Power-Packed Session

The session kicked off at 10 AM with Dr. Sumit Chanda, Group CISO at Eviden and Co-Chair of the Charter of Trust, introducing the alliance and setting the stage for an insightful discussion.

Next, the Charter’s latest report, "Security by Default in View of Major Cybersecurity Regulations," was presented by Sudhir Ethiraj, Global CSO & CEO Business Unit Cybersecurity Services (CSS) at TÜV SÜD. This report provides critical insights into aligning security practices with evolving regulatory landscapes.

One of the highlights of the session was a keynote from Mikko Hyppönen, Chief Research Officer at WithSecure and a global leader in the fight against cybercrime. With decades of experience at the frontlines of cybersecurity and IoT security, Mikko offered a compelling perspective on the rising threats we face today.

Joining him on the expert panel were:

- Lars König, Technical SOC Lead at Allianz

- Natalia Oropeza, Chief Cybersecurity Officer at Siemens

- Sudhir Ethiraj, Global Head of Cyber, TÜV SÜD

The panel, moderated by Dr. Ralf Schneider, Senior Fellow and Head of Cybersecurity & NextGenIT Think Tank at Allianz and Co-Chair of the Charter of Trust, explored the evolving cyber threat landscape and strategies for building resilient digital infrastructure.

Key Takeaways from the Experts

🔹 Mikko Hyppönen: "Cyber attacks aren’t just bad luck; they target vulnerabilities. Ransomware gangs have grown into cybercrime unicorns, while nation-state attackers focus on espionage and sabotage—with North Korea being the only country using cybercrime for financial gain. In today's world, data is the most valuable asset, and if data is the new oil, AI is the new refinery."

🔹 Sudhir Ethiraj: "Security by Default is more than just products—it’s about processes and organizational strategy. The Charter of Trust has set baseline cybersecurity requirements aligned with global regulations and OECD standards. Our biggest challenge? The explosion of overlapping cybersecurity regulations worldwide, none of them harmonized. We work together to bridge this gap."

🔹 Natalia Oropeza: "You cannot protect everything equally. Identify your most critical infrastructure—factories, IT applications, and business-driving processes—and prioritize their defense. Assume breaches will happen and prepare for infrastructure disruptions."

🔹 Lars König: "Understanding an adversary’s intent is crucial. Cyber threats range from espionage to financial attacks and pure disruption—each requiring a different response. The good news? We have more infrastructure and visibility than our adversaries. Our NetWatch community deploys attack sensors worldwide, tracking attackers in real time to take proactive action."

A Call to Action

This discussion made one thing clear: cyber resilience is a collective effort. To stay ahead of threats, organizations must collaborate, innovate, and implement proactive defense strategies.

With over 60 industry leaders in attendance, this session was a milestone in strengthening the global external engagement of the Charter of Trust, which remains committed to leading the charge in securing the digital future.

We are honoured to announce that Dr. Ralf Schneider, Senior Fellow and Head of Cybersecurity and NextGenIT Think Tank at Allianz and Dr. Sumit Chanda, Chief Operating Officer at Atos Group Security have been elected as new co-chairs of the Charter of Trust during our last Board of Directors meeting in Munich.

The Partners and Associated Partners thanked Natalia Oropeza, Global Chief Cybersecurity Officer at Siemens, for her engagement and steady leadership during her term as Chairwoman. In her tenure, the Charter of Trust underwent important internal and external changes. What first stands out is the smooth integration of the four working groups, which made the Charter of Trust more agile, leaner and more efficient. It is also safe to say that the alliance has never had such a high level of exposure externally, due to the Charter of Trust partners continuous dedication to the mission of the alliance.

In the spirit of industry collaboration, Natalia Oropeza expressed her support to our new Co-Chairs and said how “incredibly proud of what we have achieved together, welcoming new partners, strengthening our structure, and elevating the Charter of Trust's impact on the global cybersecurity landscape. Collaboration has been at the heart of our success, and I am confident that Dr. Sumit Chanda and Dr. Ralf Schneider as Co-Chairs, the Charter will continue to drive meaningful progress towards a more secure digital world."

For the first time in its history, the Charter of Trust will be co-chaired. Dr. Ralf Schneider from Allianz and Dr. Sumit Chanda from Atos who have decades of experience in the world of cybersecurity and have been active within the alliance for several years now. Both unite an intrinsic motivation to foster inter- and intra-sector collaboration as well as the continuous sharing of knowledge between the Partners and Associated Partners of the Charter of Trust.

For the next year the co-chairs aim to amplify the number of Partners and Associated Partners. This growth, however, should still preserve the unique features of the Charter of Trust as a large practitioner organization with member from all over the world. Expanding into new sectors and new countries is a key target for the new leadership team, so that the Alliance can continue to engage with stakeholders at the highest level.

Dr. Sumit Chanda underlined that “The Charter of Trust’s role is to promote a safe and trusted digital work.  Its unique partnership blend of large organisations, working across 190 countries, and across several sectors, has enabled it to make significant progress under the leadership of Mrs. Natalia Oropeza.  I would like to thank her for these great achievements.  Along with Dr. Ralf Schneider from Allianz, we welcome the opportunity to build on her work as the Co-Chairs of Charter of Trust.”

Ralf Schneider added that “In dynamic times with more risks, more uncertainty, and more unknowns, we as the Charter of Trust step up – to provide stability, promote reliability, and foster trust. This is our mission today and tomorrow.”.