Lieutenant General (Ret.) Karen H. Gibson to deliver the opening keynote
Seeing the Shadows: Securing What You Don’t Control
We are proud to announce that U.S. Lieutenant General (Ret.) Karen H. Gibson will be the opening keynote speaker at Swiss Cyber Storm 2026. The title of her keynote is “Seeing the Shadows: Securing What You Don’t Control.”
Lieutenant General (Ret.) Karen Gibson served as the 42nd Sergeant at Arms of the U.S. Senate from 2021 to 2025. Appointed in the wake of the January 6 attack on the Capitol, she was the Senate’s chief law enforcement, protocol and security officer, and led the overhaul of its physical security, continuity of government and cybersecurity programs, including the protection of 450 Senate offices across the United States.
Drawing on her experience safeguarding every aspect of the U.S. Senate’s operations and a career spanning military intelligence and cyber operations, Karen Gibson explores a fundamental challenge for cyber defenders: protecting what you cannot always see or control. From legacy systems and forgotten technology to workforce practices and third-party dependencies, she examines how hidden vulnerabilities accumulate — and what leaders can do to better understand risk, strengthen resilience, and protect the mission.
Karen H. Gibson is an exceptional speaker who will deliver an exclusive keynote at Swiss Cyber Storm – a keynote that won’t be filmed on a topic she developed especially for our audience.
Read more about Karen H. Gibson here.
The full conference schedule is available here.
Swiss Cyber Storm 2026 takes place on October 20 at the Kursaal Bern under the motto “Shadow IT” – when employees work around corporate policies to get things done, and what that means for security and compliance. Artificial intelligence — not just in the form of Shadow AI — will also receive ample attention, alongside other current topics.
Read the full newsletter here.
