Security
The implementation of the URIS recommendations gets another boost
With the appointment of Mads Niemann-Christensen as head of security, the implementation of the URIS recommendations gets a boost. The recommendations were issued by the Ministry of Higher Education and Science and are intended to ensure various aspects of business-critical security.
In 2020, the Ministry of Higher Education and Science established the Committee on Guidelines for International Research and Innovation Cooperation. Danish and foreign intelligence indicates that international research collaboration can have serious security, economic and ethical consequences.
The Committee has reviewed the existing frameworks for current collaborations across nations and has since come up with specific recommendations for new initiatives. The implementation of these recommendations is now resolutely underway at the University of Southern Denmark, where the rollout continues with Mads Niemann-Christensen at the helm.
Will protect SDU in a number of areas
The URIS recommendations are principally about identifying and protecting research, knowing collaboration partners and protecting the institution, its employees and its students.
- In addition to working with the concrete implementation of the recommendations, I will work towards even closer coordination and cooperation between the units that deal with different security perspectives: that is, research and knowledge security, IT security, data protection, emergency response, contracts and so on, says Mads Niemann-Christensen and continues:
- An important prerequisite for implementation is that SDU further strengthens its security culture. This means that it should be a natural way of thinking for employees that any research collaborations should also rest on an assessment of the risk (ethical, financial and security related) of the collaboration. We must factor security into collaborations in the same way that we endorse regular updates to IT equipment and software. It must be a natural part of the working day.
Ready for discussion
Mads Niemann-Christensen will also participate in the Forum for International Coordination and Cooperation (in Danish: Forum for International Koordination og Samarbejde – FIKS) under the Ministry of Higher Education and Science, where he replaces University Director Thomas Buchvald Vind as SDU’s representative in the forum.
If you are in doubt about any security aspects of research collaborations or in other contexts, the best advice is to follow the management structure and go to your line manager. Mads Niemann-Christensen is available to provide guidance in specific cases of doubt. Contact him by email at MCNC@sdu.dk.