ECCWS 2026
25th European Conference on Cyber Warfare and Security
Biographies
Below are the ECCWS Biographies of the Conference and Programme Chairs, Key Note Speakers and Mini-Track Chairs.
Conference and Programme Chairs
Prof. Steven Furnell is Professor of Cyber Security in the School of Computer Science at the University of Nottingham. His research interests include security management and culture, usability of security and privacy, and technologies for user authentication and intrusion detection. He has authored over 400 papers in international journals and conference proceedings, as well as various books, book chapters, and industry reports. Steve is the UK representative to Technical Committee 11 (security and privacy) within the International Federation for Information Processing, a board member of the Chartered Institute of Information Security, and a member of the Steering Group for the Cyber Security Body of Knowledge (CyBOK) and the Careers and Learning Working Group within the UK Cyber Security Council.
Dr. Dimah Almani completed her PhD in Cybersecurity at the University of Nottingham, specialising in trust mechanisms for vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication. Her research focused on improving security in connected vehicles using simulation tools such as Veins, SUMO, and OMNeT++. She also holds a Master’s degree in Computer Science from Nova Southeastern University, Florida, where she investigated cybersecurity vulnerabilities in smart transportation systems. With over 10 years of teaching experience, Dimah has developed and delivered courses on emerging technologies, supervised postgraduate students, and contributed to cybersecurity research. She is skilled in C++, Python, and MATLAB, with strong knowledge in network simulations and mathematical modelling. Dimah has served as an IEEE reviewer and held academic leadership roles including Coordinator of Quality Control and E-Learning Program Manager. She received the IBM Artificial Intelligence Analyst – Explorer Award in 2020. Her work connects theoretical models with real-world applications in cybersecurity and intelligent transportation systems.
Keynote Speakers
Mini Track Chairs
Dr. Char Sample is an assistant professor of cybersecurity at Marshall University. Dr. Sample has 40 years of industry experience beginning in software development, through product test and integration, and finally as a researcher (both applied and academic). Dr. Sample’s research areas are all cybersecurity related with an interest toward decision-making in cybersecurity.