The 9th Strathclyde International Perspectives on Cybercrime Summer School - participant blog

The 9th Strathclyde International Perspectives on Cybercrime Summer School ran in Glasgow from 24th-28th August. The summer school consisted of a one-day research symposium followed by four days of lectures and workshops with contributions from 28 speakers and highly engaged participants.

Topics ranged from verifying security protocols and using Rust programming to write secure code through to security of Critical National Infrastructure and local government authentication practices, to evidence on why young women start and continue with ethical hacking, and the psychology of cybercriminals, with speakers engaging well with the diverse backgrounds of the audience.

SPRITE+ provided grants for 4 attendees, covering their registration, travel and accommodation to attend the summer school. Read on to hear from Aimen Djemaa, Yunus Kareem, Hassan Islam and Prince Bhardwaj about their experiences of attending.

Aimen Djemaa

Attending the Strathclyde International Perspectives on Cybercrime Summer School was a valuable experience, particularly because of the diversity of the participants. I had the opportunity to engage with people from different nationalities, research backgrounds, and areas of expertise, including PhD students, academics, and practitioners. This created an engaging environment for exchanging ideas and understanding cybercrime from perspectives extending beyond purely technical cybersecurity.

The programme also included several practical workshops. I particularly enjoyed the phishing workshop and the Rust programming session, which provided opportunities to engage with both human-centred and technical aspects of cybersecurity. These practical sessions complemented the wider discussions throughout the week and made the programme particularly interactive.

Another valuable aspect of the summer school was hearing professors and researchers present and discuss their current research. The presentations introduced a range of research directions across cybercrime and cybersecurity and provided useful insight into how these challenges are being investigated from technical, behavioural and interdisciplinary perspectives. As a PhD researcher working in artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, I found these discussions particularly useful for considering how my own research relates to the wider cybercrime research landscape.

Overall, the summer school was a very positive experience, both academically and professionally. I particularly valued the opportunity to meet researchers and practitioners from different institutions and countries, exchange ideas, and learn from their experiences and expertise.

I would like to thank SPRITE+ for sponsoring my participation and providing me with the opportunity to take part in this international research community.

Yunus Kareem

Cybersecurity research can sometimes become deeply focused on technology: algorithms, protocols, vulnerabilities, attacks and defensive mechanisms. As a researcher working in IoT security, blockchain, privacy and trust, much of my work naturally sits within this technical space. Attending the Strathclyde International Perspectives on Cybercrime Summer School 2026, however, reminded me that behind every cyberattack, security control and technical vulnerability are people, behaviours, motivations and wider social systems.

Thanks to the support of SPRITE+, I had the opportunity to participate in the 9th Cybercrime Summer School at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow from 24–28 August 2026. It was an intensive week of learning, practical activities, networking and, importantly, plenty of fun.

Cybercrime from Different Perspectives

One of the aspects I appreciated most was the interdisciplinary nature of the programme. Rather than looking at cybercrime solely as a technical problem, the Summer School brought together perspectives spanning computer science, cybersecurity, criminology, privacy, artificial intelligence and human behaviour.

The week began with a research symposium covering an impressive range of contemporary topics. Discussions explored areas such as large language models and vulnerability repair, cryptocurrency-related crime, digital healthcare, phishing, privacy and the broader cybercrime ecosystem.

For me, this diversity was particularly valuable. My PhD research focuses on improving security, privacy and trust in Internet of Things environments, particularly through blockchain-based consensus mechanisms. I therefore spend a significant amount of time thinking about how we can make systems technically more resilient.

The Summer School encouraged me to consider the other side of the equation: even a technically secure system operates within a human environment. Understanding attackers, users, communities, incentives and behaviours can be just as important as understanding the underlying technology.

Learning by Doing

The practical nature of the Summer School made the experience especially memorable.

A good example was the phishing workshop. Instead of simply discussing phishing attacks through slides and theoretical examples, we explored how phishing campaigns can be designed and implemented before presenting our work. Looking at an attack from the attacker's perspective helps reveal why social engineering continues to be effective despite years of cybersecurity awareness and increasingly sophisticated technical controls.

The experience reinforced an important lesson for me: cybersecurity is not simply about identifying whether a system can be attacked. We also need to understand how and why people become targets and what makes particular attacks effective.

Other sessions explored equally relevant areas, including deepfake detection, agentic AI, critical national infrastructure, hacking communities, secure programming, privacy and anonymity, digital evidence and intrusion detection.

The OSINT Data Detectives workshop was another interesting practical element. Working with open-source information demonstrated just how much can be discovered by carefully connecting seemingly ordinary pieces of publicly available data. It was both fascinating and a useful reminder of the relationship between digital footprints, privacy and security.

AI, Cybercrime and an Evolving Threat Landscape

Artificial intelligence was understandably a recurring theme throughout the week.

Discussions around deepfakes, large language models and agentic AI highlighted the rapidly changing relationship between AI and cybersecurity. AI provides powerful capabilities for defenders, researchers and software developers, but similar technologies can also lower barriers for attackers and enable more convincing or scalable forms of cybercrime.

For researchers like me, this raises interesting questions about how security mechanisms should evolve as IoT, AI and distributed systems become increasingly interconnected.

It also reinforced my belief that future cybersecurity research needs to combine strong technical solutions with a deeper understanding of trust, identity, privacy and human behaviour.

More Than a Classroom

Of course, Cybercrime Summer School was not all cybercrime!

One of the things that made the week particularly enjoyable was the opportunity to step outside the classroom and experience Glasgow. The programme included opportunities to explore the city, including the Glasgow Necropolis and a distillery tour, as well as an evening visit to Glasgow City Chambers.

These activities created a much more relaxed environment for conversations with other participants and researchers. Some of the most valuable discussions at academic events happen outside formal presentations, and the social programme provided plenty of opportunities to exchange ideas, talk about our research journeys and build new connections.

There was a great balance between serious academic discussion, hands-on learning and simply enjoying the experience.

Taking the Experience Forward

I left Glasgow with more than additional cybersecurity knowledge. The Summer School broadened the way I think about cybercrime and its relationship with my own research.

As I continue my work around blockchain, IoT security, privacy and trust, I want to retain this wider perspective. Designing technically robust security mechanisms is important, but understanding the people and environments in which those mechanisms operate is equally critical.

The week also reminded me of the value of interdisciplinary research. Cybercrime is too complex to be addressed by one discipline alone. Computer scientists, cybersecurity researchers, criminologists, social scientists, policymakers and practitioners all bring different pieces of the puzzle.

Most importantly, the Summer School was genuinely enjoyable. It was a week of learning new things, challenging existing assumptions, meeting interesting people and exploring Glasgow.

I am grateful to SPRITE+ for sponsoring my participation and to the University of Strathclyde team, speakers, organisers and fellow participants who made the 2026 Cybercrime Summer School such a rewarding experience.

It is certainly an experience I will carry forward into the next stage of my research and cybersecurity journey.

Hassan Islam

Attending the Strathclyde Cybercrime Summer School 2026 was a valuable and engaging experience for my PhD development. The programme brought together researchers and experts across cybersecurity, cybercrime, law, artificial intelligence, and critical infrastructure. It provided a useful space to explore how technical security challenges connect with human behaviour, policy, and real-world risk. I am grateful to the organisers and sponsors for creating such a rich international learning environment.

A particular highlight was the engaging phishing workshop delivered by Andreas Aßmuth from HAW Kiel and Richard Frank from Simon Fraser University. The workshop used practical activities to demonstrate how phishing campaigns work and why social-engineering threats remain effective. It encouraged participants to think critically about recognising vulnerabilities, improving online security behaviour, and communicating cyber risks effectively. This hands-on approach made the learning especially memorable and relevant to current cybersecurity research.

The Summer School also offered valuable opportunities to exchange ideas with other postgraduate researchers and experienced academics. Conversations with participants from different disciplines and countries expanded my perspective and encouraged me to consider new approaches to my own research. Overall, the experience strengthened my understanding of cybercrime and cybersecurity while building useful professional connections.

Thank you again to SPRITE+ for supporting my participation in the summer school. It was a valuable experience and a great opportunity to learn, network, and engage with researchers working across different areas of cybercrime and cybersecurity.

Prince Bhardwaj

I am grateful to SPRITE+ for sponsoring my place at the Strathclyde Cybercrime Summer School 2026. It was a really enjoyable week, and a nice chance to see Glasgow too.

My PhD is on the security and privacy of networks, so I was not sure how much of a cybercrime programme would connect to my work. It turned out to be quite a lot. Andreas's talk on current threats stood out for me. He showed how ships and cars still depend on systems designed in the 1980s, and those ships are now being connected through internet. That is very close to the problems I look at.

I enjoyed the range of the week, discussing fake follower markets and network privacy to intrusion detection and young women in ethical hacking. And my most favorite one "How to get away with cybercrime" gave a frank view of how little online crime is ever reported. Also the OSINT workshop on the last day was great fun, and a bit worrying too, as we saw how much anyone can find with free tools.

Beyond the talks, the City Chambers visit and the coffee breaks were a good chance to meet researchers from Canada, Germany and across the UK(made some friends). I have come away with new ideas for my research and some useful contacts. Thank you to the organisers for such a friendly and well-run week.