Cybersecurity & Digital Trust Symposium 2026
Gulbenkian Amphitheater, Safadi 601 and 607, LAU Beirut campus
LAU is proudly hosting the Cybersecurity & Digital Trust Symposium 2026, co-organized with Haigazian University, under the theme “Securing the Future: Cross-Sector Insights into Cybersecurity and Data Governance.”
This one-day series of panels and presentations will be attended by LAU President Chaouki T. Abdallah, Haigazian President Rev. Paul Ara Haidostian, and Minister of State for Technology and Artificial Intelligence Kamal Shehadi.
Join other business leaders, IT and compliance professionals, startup founders, higher education stakeholders, and final-year students for an event that will reveal new trends and challenges in one of the most crucial aspects of the digital age.
Agenda
|
Time |
Session |
Details |
Location |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 09:00 – 9:30 | Registration | Gulbenkian Amphitheater | ||
| 09:30 – 10:00 | Opening Remarks: Cybersecurity in an Increasingly Connected World |
Speakers: Dr. Chaouki T. Abdallah, Dr. Paul Ara Haidostian, Dr. Kamal Shehadi Overview of AI disruption, data governance, and sectoral collaboration. |
Gulbenkian Amphitheater |
|
| 10:00 – 10:20 | Keynote Address: Cybersecurity – From a Threat to Strategic Priority |
Speaker: Michael Rothey How breaches influence investor confidence, customer trust, and national competitiveness. |
Gulbenkian Amphitheater |
|
| 10:20 – 11:00 | Panel 1: Data is Gold – Governance, Trust & Competitive Advantage |
Moderator: Dr. Kamal Shehadi Panelists: Legal Tech Advisor, Data Protection Officer, AUB Faculty From GDPR to ISO: Building trust through compliance & automation. |
Gulbenkian Amphitheater |
Panelists:
Charbel Daoud (Ninjaco) Dr. Joe Tekli (LAU) George Hatem (Profiles Software) |
| 11:00 – 11:20 | Coffee Break | Networking & partner exhibits | Gulbenkian Amphitheater | |
| 11:20 – 12:00 | Panel 2 (Parallel A): Breaches, Blackouts & Bottom Lines – The Real Cost of Cyber Insecurity |
Moderator: HU Faculty (Ahmad Bazzi) Panelists (max 3): Risk Consultant, IT Leader, Retail Manager Case studies on ransomware, system downtime, and recovery strategy. |
Safadi Room 601 |
Imad Awad (Malia Tech) |
| Panel 2 (Parallel B): Sector-Specific Security Challenges |
Moderator: Bradley Tucker Panelists: Healthcare CISO, GovTech Officer, SME Owner HIPAA, FERPA, PCI-DSS, and SME risk mitigation.
|
Safadi Room 607 |
Panelist: Najib Abdelnour (Koein) Contributor: Jack Osta (CompuWorld) BDL: Zeina Aoun |
|
| 12:00 – 13:00 |
Presentation 1: Human Factor in Cybersecurity
Presentation 2: Incident Response & Business Continuity (Dr. Ayman)
|
Exploring awareness programs, psychological phishing angles, and insider risk reduction.
Building Incident Response Plans, Disaster Recovery Best Practices, and Real-World Breach Lessons. |
Gulbenkian Amphitheater |
|
| 13:00 – 14:00 | Lunch Break | Networking | TBD | |
| 14:00 – 14:40 |
Panel 3 (Parallel A): From Classroom to Career – Cyber Workforce Development
Panel 3 (Parallel B): Innovation Showcase: Student Projects in Action |
Moderator: LAU, AUB Faculty Aligning academia and industry for job-ready skills & certifications.
Host: Shant Estepan 2. Dr. Hussein Bakri’s student (AUB) |
Gulbenkian Amphitheater |
Panelist: Tarek El Bacha (ITLS)
Antoine Tannous (NASA APP) |
| 14:40 – 15:00 | Closing Remarks: From Insight to Action |
Speaker: Organizers Key takeaways and future collaboration announcements. |
Gulbenkian Amphitheater |