Impact

Wicked problems demand innovative solutions.

Here are some of the areas where SecDev’s work has made a difference.

Cyber security and digital transformation

Cyber security is at the top of the global agenda. Cyber attacks targeting critical infrastructure - including financial, energy and health providers - are escalating. A key reason for this is that geopolitical and criminal threats are also increasing. With cyber-related threats evolving in scope and sophistication not least with the advent of AI, executives need to upgrade their foresight, incident response and digital resilience.

SecDev helps clients defend critical infrastructure and build digital resilience against evolving cyber threats. SecDev leverages deep technical expertise to design and deploy comprehensive cyber strategies and security operations centers. SecDev quantities value at risk through attack surface and vulnerability assessments and supply-chain diagnostics. SecDev conducts on-site and online training to strengthen organizational awareness, enhance operational capabilities, and upgrade crisis response.

Digital harm prevention and reduction

Digital harms are the negative externalities of the online world. SecDev defines them as online phenomena that harm individuals and communities and include everything from misinformation, disinformation, hate speech and extremist content to online harassment, intimidation, bullying, scams, child pornography, privacy breaches and digital surveillance. Digital harms are present in all societies, though vary in intensity and impact depending on local context and the extent of digital penetration. With the advent of advanced AI, digital harms are getting exponentially worse.

SecDev works with partners around the world to support measures to detect, deter and disrupt digital harms. SecDev applies manual and automated approaches to social listening, adhering to strict ethical standards and best practices. SecDev works with national governments, social media platforms, international organizations and local non-governmental groups to document digital harms and support their capacities to limit their reach and effect. SecDev builds real-time dashboards and analytical reports to build awareness and resilience both online and off.

Urban risks and resilience

Urbanization is an unstoppable megatrend. Already, over half the world lives in a city, rising to three quarters by 2050. The rapid expansion of cities is not evenly distributed. All upper income countries are already heavily urbanized while low- and middle-income countries are still undergoing urban transition. With most future urban growth expected in Africa and Asia, the challenge of designing, financing, building and managing green, low-carbon, livable, inclusive and sustainable cities is a global one.

SecDev draws on a global network of architects, planners, engineers and digital specialists to help city leaders, utility operators, investors and citizens plan for the urban settlements of tomorrow. SecDev offers world-class expertise in master planning and place-making, environmental, social and digital impact assessments, modeling and simulation, nature-based solutions, and cyber security, data management and privacy standards, and wider digital transformation. SecDev organizes events with leading experts in design, technology and innovation to help cities imagine a better future.

Green transition and critical minerals

The transition to cleaner and secure energy brings new risks, including in relation to critical minerals. This is because the energy systems powered by clean energy technologies are fundamentally different to those fuelled by conventional hydrocarbon resources. Renewable energy sources - photovoltaic plants, wind farms, electric vehicles and the batteries that power them - require more critical minerals to build them. Over the past decade, the average amount of minerals required for a new unit of power generation has soared by 50%. The race to secure supply chains is generating competition and friction.

SecDev is working with global partners to track efforts by government and companies to secure critical mineral supplies. Working in some of the world’s most complex geographies, SecDev’s subject matter experts are harvesting open source data, geospatially mapping the location and value of deposits and reserves and associated processing and transportation infrastructure, and analyzing the opportunities and risks to governments and companies invested in the green energy transition. SecDev works with major media outlets and research institutes to build awareness and sensitize the wider public.

"We trust visionaries at SecDev to solve the futures most complex security challenges, to trailblaze the path through the geo-politics of cyberspace, identify emerging threats, produce the most advanced analytical products in this space and deliver elegant solutions that meet the demands of the country's largest telecommunications carrier."

SecDev Client