Cybersecurity is no longer simply about protecting IT systems. It is about protecting patients, safeguarding critical healthcare services and maintaining trust in an increasingly connected healthcare environment.
That message resonated throughout Cybersecurity for Healthcare 2026, where 140 healthcare leaders, cybersecurity professionals, healthtech innovators, clinicians, researchers, policymakers and technology providers gathered at Dundalk Institute of Technology on 1 July to explore the evolving cyber threats facing healthcare and the practical actions organisations can take to strengthen resilience.
Organised by the Connected Health & Wellbeing Cluster (Dundalk Institute of Technology) and Cyber Ireland, with collaboration from Health Innovation Research Alliance Northern Ireland (HIRANI), and support from TrendAI and InterTradeIreland, the conference brought together national and international experts to share practical experiences, emerging threats and real-world strategies for protecting one of society’s most critical sectors.
Throughout the day, delegates heard from healthcare leaders, hospital CISOs, international cybersecurity experts, policymakers and innovators who shared practical insights into everything from AI governance and ransomware preparedness to medical device security, operational resilience and cross-border collaboration.
Cybersecurity for Healthcare 2026 – By the Numbers
- 140 delegates from across Ireland and Northern Ireland
- 20+ expert speakers from healthcare, government, cybersecurity, academia and industry
- 4 expert panel discussions
- Live ethical hacking demonstrations through the Mini Digi Hub Hacker Shack
- Exhibition and networking showcase featuring leading healthcare and cybersecurity organisations
- A full day of practical case studies, strategic insight and knowledge sharing
Cybersecurity is Now a Patient Safety Issue
One of the strongest messages throughout the conference was that cybersecurity is no longer solely the responsibility of IT departments. It has become fundamental to delivering safe patient care, protecting critical services and maintaining public trust.
Opening the conference, international keynote speaker Vasileios Mingos from Health-ISAC provided a comprehensive overview of the global healthcare threat landscape, highlighting the continued growth of ransomware, phishing, third-party breaches and AI-enabled attacks. He also emphasised the importance of trusted information sharing between healthcare organisations, demonstrating how collaboration is becoming one of the sector’s most powerful defences against emerging threats.
Building on this theme, Marie Lalor, General Manager responsible for Cyber Strategy & Programmes within the HSE CISO Office, outlined how healthtech, medtech and cybersecurity companies can successfully engage with the HSE. Rather than focusing solely on technical capability, she demonstrated the importance of governance, assurance, procurement readiness and embedding security from the earliest stages of innovation.
Throughout the day, speakers consistently reinforced that cybersecurity is now a core element of patient safety and healthcare delivery.
AI is Reshaping Both Healthcare and Cybersecurity
Artificial Intelligence was one of the defining themes of the conference, featuring across keynote presentations, technical sessions and panel discussions.
Viktor Spetnijs delivered an engaging demonstration of how attackers can manipulate AI-powered healthcare applications through prompt injection techniques, highlighting the importance of implementing robust guardrails and governance before deploying AI into clinical environments.
Later, Robert Kehoe explored the much-discussed Claude Mythos model, separating fact from media hype while explaining how AI is fundamentally changing the speed of cyberattacks rather than inventing entirely new attack techniques. The message was clear: organisations must prepare for attack timelines measured in hours rather than weeks by strengthening governance, improving software visibility and accelerating incident response.
The afternoon panel discussion on AI Governance Frameworks further explored how healthcare organisations can embrace AI innovation safely while balancing security, governance, compliance and patient trust.
Building Resilience Rather Than Chasing Perfection
A recurring theme across multiple presentations was that healthcare organisations should focus on resilience rather than assuming cyber incidents can be completely prevented.
Dermot Downey shared valuable lessons from Bon Secours Health System, while Damien Payne from Kingsbridge Healthcare Group demonstrated how embedding cybersecurity into overall hospital strategy has strengthened resilience through consistent, incremental improvements rather than one-off transformation projects.
Their presentations highlighted six key pillars of cyber resilience:
- Identity and access management
- Asset visibility
- Vulnerability and patch management
- Business continuity and disaster recovery
- Third-party and supply chain security
- Building a culture where cybersecurity becomes everyone’s responsibility
The emphasis throughout was clear: resilience comes from good governance, strong leadership and continuous improvement, enabling healthcare organisations to continue delivering safe patient care even during disruption.
Collaboration is Healthcare’s Strongest Defence
Cybersecurity cannot be solved by individual organisations working alone.
Throughout the conference, speakers repeatedly highlighted the importance of collaboration between healthcare providers, government agencies, industry, academia and international partners.
The introduction of the “Cybersecurity Special Interest Group” (SIG) reinforced the Connected Health & Wellbeing Cluster & Cyber Ireland’s commitment to creating an ongoing forum where organisations can share knowledge, identify emerging threats and collaborate on practical solutions for the healthcare sector.
Roslyn Neill from InterTradeIreland showcased the extensive support available for businesses looking to collaborate across the island of Ireland, demonstrating how innovation funding, research partnerships and strategic collaboration can strengthen both business growth and cybersecurity capability.
The closing panel discussion on international collaboration further reinforced that cyber threats know no borders and that collective defence will become increasingly important as healthcare continues to digitise.
Practical Action Over Theory
One of the defining strengths of Cybersecurity for Healthcare 2026 was its emphasis on practical, actionable advice.
The live Ethical Hacking demonstrations delivered by Jason McGee and Tadhg Deeney from the Mini Digi Hub proved particularly popular, giving delegates a first-hand look at how attackers intercept information over insecure public Wi-Fi networks, build attacker profiles and exploit publicly available information to launch highly convincing phishing attacks.
Across every session, speakers focused on practical actions organisations can begin implementing immediately, including:
- Strengthening identity management
- Improving software and asset inventories
- Managing third-party and supply chain risk
- Conducting regular tabletop exercises
- Embedding AI governance
- Building organisation-wide cybersecurity awareness
- Continuously reviewing and improving cyber resilience
Rather than leaving delegates with a list of problems, the conference equipped them with practical strategies that can be implemented to strengthen resilience across their own organisations.
Looking Ahead
Cybersecurity for Healthcare 2026 demonstrated both the scale of the challenges facing healthcare organisations and the strength of the community working to address them.
From AI-enabled attacks and medical device security to governance, operational resilience and international collaboration, every session reinforced the importance of taking a proactive, collaborative approach to cybersecurity.
Most importantly, the conference highlighted that cybersecurity is no longer simply an IT issue—it is fundamental to protecting patients, maintaining essential healthcare services and enabling innovation across the healthcare ecosystem.
The Connected Health & Wellbeing Cluster would like to thank all of our speakers, panel members, exhibitors, sponsors, partners and delegates for making Cybersecurity for Healthcare 2026 such a valuable and engaging event.
We look forward to continuing these conversations through the CyberHealth SIG and future Connected Health & Wellbeing Cluster initiatives as we work together to build a more secure, resilient and trusted healthcare ecosystem across Ireland.
Thank You To Our Sponsors
Thank You To Our Exhibitors
