Cyberspace Under Strain: The First Cyber Thursday of 2026 Sets the Tone

Last Thursday, cyberspace was portrayed as an increasingly complex and strategic arena of confrontation, where geopolitical issues, defence, the protection of civil society and cybercrime intertwine.

Cyber Threat Investigation (CTI) at the Heart of Understanding Digital Threats

Cyber Threat Investigation (CTI) involves collecting, analysing and exploiting information on cyber threats in order to prevent, detect and respond to attacks. This approach includes the study of malicious actors, their tactics, techniques and procedures, as well as monitoring indicators of compromise to anticipate risks.

Amaury-Jacques Garçons (Sekoia.io) highlighted the importance of open-source intelligence work as a complement to internal tools and methods in producing relevant information, understanding and identifying threats. He illustrated this approach with concrete examples drawn from his work as a Threat Hunter. In particular, he revisited the activities of the APT28 group, attributed to Russian intelligence (the GRU), notably a series of events identified during a visit by the Russian president to Kazakhstan.

A Collective Response to the Challenges of Defence and Digital Sovereignty

The round-table discussion that followed brought together four professionals engaged in strategic fields: the military, intelligence, investigation and technology.

Aurélie Laize (Airbus Defence and Space Cyber) shared feedback on her experience in designing capability-building tools for information warfare within a leading industrial player in the defence sector.

Lieutenant Colonel Julie Lebot (Groupement de la Cyberdéfense des Armées – GCA) provided a military perspective on the cyber threat, highlighting the complementarity of the various entities involved, as well as the operational, strategic and national defence challenges.

Yann Loubry (Section de lutte contre la cybercriminalité J3 – Parquet de Paris / JUNALCO) presented the judicial and criminal dimension, from the investigation of cyberattacks through to the judicial handling of complex cases.

The discussions addressed a central question: how can a polymorphic threat be thwarted and digital sovereignty defended? The various levers such as LID, LIO, L2I, the legal framework and the strength of collective action were explored during the exchanges.

Students, experts and invited cybersecurity professionals were then able to continue the discussions and share their experiences during the traditional convivial cocktail reception.

This January Cyber Thursday marked the final event of the year in the evening format. The very last Cyber Thursday will take place next month, in the afternoon, as part of the Winter Research School.