Machine Intelligence & Security for Smart Cities (TRUST)

Identity and context

• Dates: 15–16 June 2026
• Venue / format: Hybrid format: SNSPA, Bvd. Expoziției 30A, Bucharest, and online via Smart-EDU Hub Webex.
• Organising frame: SNSPA, Faculty of Public Administration, Smart-EDU Hub.
• Public positioning: A TRUST edition focused on cyber-resilient intelligent cities, machine intelligence, AI in cybersecurity and public-sector digital resilience.

Editorial overview

TRUST 2026 is organised around the theme Building Cyber-Resilient Intelligent Cities. It invites academics, policy makers, practitioners, researchers and students from administrative sciences, communication, informatics, cybernetics and related areas, while encouraging specialists from public administration bodies. The edition gives strong visibility to doctoral research and interdisciplinary work linking machine intelligence, cybersecurity, digital governance and smart-city resilience.

Programme architecture

• Pre-conference Doctoral Workshop on 15 June 2026 in Room 609, with online participation.
• Introductory notes by Cătălin Vrabie and Diana-Camelia Iancu.
• Doctoral Workshop contributions on digital governance, information security training, secure data exchange, AI in education, algorithmic power in warfare, facial recognition, explainable AI for transportation, disinformation and IoT weaknesses, critical infrastructure and public health governance.
• Welcome & Keynote address on 16 June 2026 in Room 804, moderated by Cătălin Vrabie.
• Parallel Expert Panel 1.1: Artificial Intelligence in Smart Cities.
• Parallel Expert Panels 1.2 and 1.3: Artificial Intelligence in Cyber Security.

Speakers, chairs and institutional network

• Cătălin Vrabie, Conference Chair, SNSPA.
• Diana-Camelia Iancu, Dean of the Faculty of Public Administration, SNSPA.
• Mihai Păunescu, Deputy-Rector, SNSPA.
• Victor Negrescu, Vice-President of the European Parliament.
• Minister Plenipotentiary Nikolaos Vlahakis, Embassy of Greece in Bucharest.
• Panel moderators include Cătălin Vrabie, Diana-Camelia Iancu, Nikola Vangelov, Adelina Dumitrescu-Peculea, Dawid Orłowski and Elena Marinică.

Core panels and topics

• Artificial Intelligence in Cyber Security
• Cyber Management and Data Security
• Communications and Information Sabotage
• Regulatory Compliance in Digital Environments
• Cybercrime and digital risk governance
• IoT vulnerabilities in smart cities
• Facial recognition: risks and opportunities
• Cyber resilience in public administration
• Artificial Intelligence in Smart Cities

Selected contributions and key moments

• Doctoral Workshop presentations include research from Hungary, Moldova, Romania, India, Azerbaijan, South Africa and Ukraine.
• Expert Panel 1.1 includes cyber governance, disinformation, AI-assisted therapy, smart water governance, generative AI in design and architecture, hostile information activities, digital product passports, regional supply chains, QR codes as infrastructure and cross-border smart mobility.
• Expert Panel 1.2 includes cybersecurity policy in Ukraine, AI fraud in Moldova, AI and the public image of EU institutions, generative AI disparities in non-anglophone journalism, cyberattack detection in industrial IoT and explainable AI for smart cities.
• Expert Panel 1.3 includes AI-assisted recruitment risks, Romanian city digital strategies, cancer prevention digital ecosystems, urban mobility anomaly detection, carbon-emission reduction, urban resilience systems, Industry 4.0 governance and cyber-secure logistics systems.

Research focus

• Institutional varieties of digital governance and citizen satisfaction.
• Information security training and cybernetic approaches.
• Secure data exchange in smart cities.
• AI-driven disinformation and information sabotage.
• Digital twins, predictive analytics and critical infrastructure.
• Cyber-physical resilient regional supply chains.
• Explainable AI for cyber-resilient smart cities.
• Cyber-resilient mobility, logistics, public health and municipal digital infrastructure.

Public and academic relevance

• Moves TRUST toward a broader machine-intelligence and cybersecurity agenda.
• Builds a strong doctoral-research pillar within the conference.
• Connects cybersecurity with public administration, warfare, transport, water governance, education, health, mobility and digital platforms.
• Frames cyber resilience as both a technical and governance challenge for intelligent cities.

Identity and context

• Dates: 3–4 June 2025
• Venue / format: Hybrid format: SNSPA, Bvd. Expoziției 30A, Bucharest; online via Smart-EDU Hub Webex. The edition also hosts a joint hybrid workshop with the Public IT Security (PITS) Conference in Berlin.
• Organising frame: SNSPA, Faculty of Public Administration, Smart-EDU Hub and RheinMain University of Applied Sciences, Department Design, Computer Sciences and Media.
• Public positioning: A joint Bucharest–Berlin hybrid edition connecting TRUST with the Public IT Security Conference.

Editorial overview

TRUST 2025 keeps the core security agenda while extending it toward machine intelligence and public IT security. It highlights secure administrative processes, applied computer science, smart systems and the role of AI in public-sector security.

Programme architecture

• Pre-conference / Doctoral Workshop on 3 June 2025 in Room 804.
• Introductory notes by Cătălin Vrabie, Teodora Bițoiu, Mălina Ciocea and Bogdan Padeanu.
• Doctoral Workshop contributions on aquaculture monitoring, API security, healthcare management ethics, TikTok disinformation, big data analytics, economic consequences of cyber incidents, EU regulatory compliance, data protection in the era of AI, hybrid war propaganda, hospital construction and algorithmic HR governance.
• Welcome & Keynote address on 4 June 2025 with Remus Pricopie, Teodora Bițoiu, Cătălin Vrabie, Ra’ed M. BenShams, Mihnea Alexandru Moisescu and Ioana Petrescu.
• Working Group 1, hybrid Berlin–Bucharest Working Group 2 and an Expert Panel on Cyber management, Data security & Information sabotage.

Speakers, chairs and institutional network

• Conference co-chairs: Cătălin Vrabie and Christian Schachtner.
• Secretariat: Luminița Movanu, Florentina Pană-Micu and Georgiana Mădălina Mihăilă.
• Working Group 1 chairs: Teodora Bițoiu and Nikola Vangelov.
• Hybrid Berlin–Bucharest Working Group chairs: Christian Schachtner and Cătălin Vrabie.
• Key contributors include Remus Pricopie, Ra’ed M. BenShams, Mihnea Alexandru Moisescu and Ioana Petrescu.

Core panels and topics

• Artificial Intelligence in Cyber Security
• Cyber Management and Data Security
• Communications and Information Sabotage
• Regulatory Compliance
• Doctoral Workshop in the era of Generative AI
• Public IT security and smart systems
• Smart governance and secure administrative processes

Selected contributions and key moments

• The Doctoral Workshop is introduced as a new and vital conference section.
• The RheinMain co-hosting section highlights IT security, smart systems, administrative IT, sensor and communication technology and applied computer science.
• Working Group 1 includes AI in cybersecurity, rural resilience, energy consumption, energy poverty, digital twins and cybersecurity as a contemporary challenge.
• The Berlin–Bucharest Working Group includes public-sector management platforms, municipal AI implementation, Government as a Platform, AI simulations in public administration and anonymization for the European digital legal framework.
• The Expert Panel includes border-security facial detection, command and control centres, fake news about 5G, social engineering and phishing, lecturer face recognition and public-sector information security.

Research focus

• AI-assisted disinformation on TikTok in Romania.
• Big Data analytics for proactive cyber threat intelligence.
• Economic consequences of cyber incidents.
• Data protection challenges in the era of AI.
• Smart supply chains and digital security in hospital construction.
• Algorithmic governance of human resource management.
• Digital twins and virtual personas as foundations for trust in adaptive smart systems.
• Anonymization as a key technology for the European digital legal framework.

Public and academic relevance

• Introduces the Doctoral Workshop as a formal TRUST component.
• Expands the conference internationally through RheinMain / PITS co-hosting.
• Connects administrative informatics with IT security, smart systems and public-sector transformation.
• Strengthens the bridge between cybersecurity, AI, public administration and intelligent urban ecosystems.

Identity and context

• Dates: 5 June 2024
• Venue / format: Hybrid format: SNSPA, Bvd. Expoziției 30A, Bucharest, Room 804 / Room 609, and online via Smart-EDU Hub Webex.
• Organising frame: SNSPA, Faculty of Public Administration, Smart-EDU Hub.
• Public positioning: A Securing Smart Cities edition focused on cyber management, data security, information sabotage and digital solutions.

Editorial overview

The 2024 programme is structured around a Welcome & Keynote address, an Expert Panel on Cyber management, Data security & Information sabotage, and an Expert Panel on Smart cities: trends and digital solutions.

Programme architecture

• Welcome & Keynote address with Remus Pricopie, Diana-Camelia Iancu, Cătălin Vrabie, Maria-Manuela Catrina and Mihai Daniel Chiroiu.
• Expert Panel: Cyber management, Data security & Information sabotage, moderated by Parvin Neginraz and Teodora Bițoiu.
• Expert Panel: Smart cities: trends and digital solutions, moderated by Cătălin Vrabie and Stefano Colafranceschi.
• Hybrid sessions in Room 804, Room 609 and online.

Speakers, chairs and institutional network

• Remus Pricopie, Rector of SNSPA.
• Diana-Camelia Iancu, Dean of the Faculty of Public Administration, SNSPA.
• Cătălin Vrabie, Conference Chair.
• Maria-Manuela Catrina, Deputy Director, National Directorate for Cyber Security.
• Mihai Daniel Chiroiu, POLITEHNICA București.
• Parvin Neginraz, Eastern Mennonite University.
• Teodora Bițoiu, SNSPA.
• Christian Schachtner, RheinMain University of Applied Sciences Wiesbaden.

Core panels and topics

• Cyber management
• Data security
• Information sabotage
• Fake news and disinformation
• Personal data protection and AI
• Cybersecurity in post-pandemic public administration
• Smart cities: trends and digital solutions
• Digital transformation and cyber-resilience

Selected contributions and key moments

• Maria-Manuela Catrina contributes on Strategic Cyber Risk Management and decision makers’ ability to mitigate digital threats.
• Mihai Daniel Chiroiu presents Implementing Trusted Labeling for Data Non-Repudiation.
• The first expert panel addresses education against fake news, governance in complex contexts, accessibility and inclusion, Albania’s cybersecurity evolution, data phishing, face recognition regulation and ICT security in European enterprises.
• The second expert panel includes cybercrime impact zones, water utility network access control, information sabotage under communist regimes, the Guccifer case, Indonesian local-government smart-city challenges and the AI divide in cybersecurity.

Research focus

• Cybersecurity in post-pandemic public administration.
• Fake news and information sabotage.
• Data phishing and personal-data protection.
• AI-powered facial recognition and data protection risks.
• Cybersecurity evolution in Albania.
• Cybercrime disruption and data-security landscapes.
• Business continuity management for public institutions.
• Smart-city challenges in Indonesian local governments.

Public and academic relevance

• Keeps the series focused on security as a central public-administration issue.
• Connects cyber risk, AI, disinformation and smart-city digital solutions.
• Introduces stronger public-sector decision-making and cybersecurity management perspectives.
• Brings together European, Asian and international case studies.

Identity and context

• Dates: 9 June 2023
• Venue / format: Hybrid format: SNSPA, Bvd. Expoziției 30A, Bucharest, Room 804, and online via Smart-EDU Hub Webex.
• Organising frame: SNSPA, Faculty of Public Administration, Smart-EDU Hub, together with Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iași, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration.
• Public positioning: A hybrid edition connecting cyber management, data security, information sabotage and smart-city digital solutions.

Editorial overview

The edition combines expert panels on cyber management, data security and information sabotage with a workshop on Smart cities: trends and digital solutions. It has a strong applied orientation, with contributions from Romania, Greece, Moldova, Taiwan, Indonesia, Macau, India and Germany.

Programme architecture

• Welcome & Keynote address with Diana-Camelia Iancu and Cătălin Vrabie.
• Expert Panel: Cyber management, Data security & Information sabotage, moderated by Teodora Bițoiu.
• Workshop: Smart cities: trends and digital solutions, moderated by Ana Iolanda Vodă and Cătălin Vrabie.
• Second Expert Panel: Cyber management, Data security & Information sabotage, moderated by Crina Rădulescu.

Speakers, chairs and institutional network

• Diana-Camelia Iancu, Dean, Faculty of Public Administration, SNSPA.
• Cătălin Vrabie, Conference Chair.
• Teodora Bițoiu, SNSPA.
• Ana Iolanda Vodă, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iași.
• Crina Rădulescu, SNSPA.
• Christian Schachtner, German academic context.
• Gabriel Lazăr, Ascendia S.A.
• Tudor Jijie and Daniela Tatiana Șoitu, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iași.

Core panels and topics

• Cyber management
• Data security
• Information sabotage
• Fake news and AI technologies
• Health data and smart-city security
• Smart cities: trends and digital solutions
• Digital transformation of communities
• Cyber resilience and outer space security

Selected contributions and key moments

• The first panel includes human error and cybernetic security systems, personal data and identity, digital health in Moldova, data security in Indonesia, AI-driven disinformation in Russian hybrid warfare and ESG reporting.
• The Smart Cities workshop includes LIVRESQ and AI in education, smart counties and growth poles, Iași 2.0, financing digital transformation, Research & Innovation for Cities and Citizens, and compliance / IT security / data protection in German municipalities.
• The second expert panel includes digital health data, outer space security, early detection of APTs and ransomware, smart citizenry, health policies in crisis, LoRa-based sensitive data protection and active cyber defense.

Research focus

• AI disinformation and Russian hybrid warfare.
• ESG reporting and data security.
• Digital health systems and smart-city data protection.
• Smart counties and intelligent mobility.
• Financing digital transformation of communities.
• Outer space security and cyber resilience.
• Active defense cybersecurity technologies.
• LoRa-based smart-city networks.

Public and academic relevance

• Strengthens collaboration with Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iași.
• Connects cybersecurity themes with smart-cities development, health data, smart counties and digital-transformation financing.
• Links information sabotage to hybrid warfare and public-sector vulnerability.
• Expands the conference’s applied orientation through a dedicated smart-city workshop.

Identity and context

• Dates: 2 June 2022
• Venue / format: Online event using Cisco Webex.
• Organising frame: Securing Smart Cities International Conference / Faculty of Public Administration, SNSPA.
• Public positioning: Online edition focused on cyber management, data security, information sabotage and citizens’ safety.

Editorial overview

The 2022 programme includes welcome addresses by Diana-Camelia Iancu and Cătălin Vrabie, followed by an expert panel on Cyber management, Data security & Information sabotage and another expert panel on Citizens’ Safety.

Programme architecture

• Welcome addresses by Diana-Camelia Iancu and Cătălin Vrabie.
• Expert Panel: Cyber management, Data security & Information sabotage, moderated by Cătălin Vrabie.
• Expert Panel: Citizens’ Safety, moderated by Parvin Neginraz.
• Online format through Cisco Webex.
• Final reflections session.

Speakers, chairs and institutional network

• Diana-Camelia Iancu, Dean, Faculty of Public Administration, SNSPA.
• Cătălin Vrabie, Conference Chair.
• Alexander Prosser, Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration.
• Amir Shojaan, Ministry of Interior, Tehran.
• Lasse Berntzen, University of South-Eastern Norway.
• Milena Yordanova-Krumova, Technical University of Sofia.
• Christian Schachtner, IUBH University of Applied Sciences.
• Parvin Neginraz, Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Romania.

Core panels and topics

• Cyber management
• Data security
• Information sabotage
• Citizens’ safety
• NIS-2 Directive
• IoT challenges and opportunities
• Cyber physical systems and cyber warfare
• Threats and cyber attacks

Selected contributions and key moments

• Alexander Prosser presents the NIS-2 Directive and what to expect for the Smart City.
• Amir Shojaan presents IoT challenges and opportunities.
• Lasse Berntzen addresses safe and secure smart cities.
• Milena Yordanova-Krumova presents SaaS and Open Data: Novelty Smart City Apps 3.0.
• Christian Schachtner presents CISIS12, a holistic information security management system approach.
• Citizens’ Safety panel includes threats and cyber attacks, smart escalator emergency stop systems, Beijing case study, cyber warfare, destination brand management and cyber-threat penetration.

Research focus

• NIS-2 and smart cities.
• IoT risks and opportunities.
• Open data and smart-city applications.
• Holistic information security management.
• Cyber warfare and cyber physical systems.
• Citizens’ safety and security threats.
• Smart escalator emergency systems and smart-city threats.

Public and academic relevance

• Adds citizens’ safety as a central component of smart-city cybersecurity.
• Connects European regulatory change with smart-city governance.
• Maintains online international academic exchange.
• Strengthens technical and governance discussions on secure smart cities.

Identity and context

• Dates: 22 April 2021
• Venue / format: Online event using Cisco Webex.
• Organising frame: Securing Smart Cities International Conference / Faculty of Public Administration, SNSPA.
• Public positioning: Online edition strengthening cybersecurity, data-security and information-sabotage themes.

Editorial overview

The 2021 programme includes welcome addresses, two plenary sessions and a debate / Q&A session. It brings together perspectives from Romania, Germany, Iran and European project contexts.

Programme architecture

• Welcome addresses by Diana-Camelia Iancu and Cătălin Vrabie.
• Plenary Session I chaired by Diana-Camelia Iancu and Christian Schachtner.
• Plenary Session II chaired by Parvin Neginraz and Cătălin Vrabie.
• Debates and Q&A session moderated by Cătălin Vrabie.
• Closing session.

Speakers, chairs and institutional network

• Diana-Camelia Iancu, Dean, Faculty of Public Administration, SNSPA.
• Cătălin Vrabie, Conference Chair.
• Christian Schachtner, IUBH University of Applied Sciences.
• Alibeman Eghbali Zarch, Institute for Political and International Studies, Iran.
• Parvin Neginraz, Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Romania.
• Radu Stănescu, Sandline.
• George Suciu, BEIA Consult International.
• Caterina Tomulescu, National Institute for Chemical-Pharmaceutical R&D.

Core panels and topics

• Cyber management
• Data security
• Information sabotage
• Cyber attacks
• Smart-city programme management
• IoT and cybersecurity
• Cybersecurity in smart-city systems
• Cyberbiosecurity

Selected contributions and key moments

• Alibeman Eghbali Zarch presents In the Age of Intelligence, the Destructive Impact of Cyber Attacks.
• Christian Schachtner discusses cybersecurity in project management of complex smart-city programmes and interoperability of data services.
• Parvin Neginraz presents smart-city technologies and cybersecurity challenges.
• Cristi Milea and Cezar Varlan discuss the idea that the smarter the city, the more vulnerable it becomes.
• George Suciu presents S4ALLCITIES, focused on safe and secure open spaces in European smart cities.
• Caterina Tomulescu presents a short review on cyberbiosecurity.

Research focus

• Cyber attacks and intelligence-age threats.
• Interoperability of data services in smart-city programmes.
• Security challenges of smart-city technologies.
• Cybersecurity in smart-city systems.
• Safe and secure open spaces in European smart cities.
• Security obstacles in smart-city theory.
• Cyberbiosecurity.

Public and academic relevance

• Consolidates the conference during the online pandemic period.
• Strengthens links between smart-city theory and cybersecurity practice.
• Introduces cyberbiosecurity as an interdisciplinary topic.
• Builds continuity from the first edition while expanding the range of technical and governance perspectives.

Identity and context

• Dates: 2 April 2020
• Venue / format: SNSPA / Bucharest conference context.
• Organising frame: Faculty of Public Administration, SNSPA; Organising Committee: Cătălin Vrabie and Parvin Neginraz.
• Public positioning: The first Securing Smart Cities edition, created to popularise cybersecurity in relation to smart cities.

Editorial overview

The 2020 edition frames cybersecurity as a necessary dimension of smart-city development. It invites specialists and researchers from social and humanistic disciplines, political science, communication, legal science, medical science, European integration, sociology, architecture, economics, computer science and cybernetics. It promotes multistakeholder discussions involving government, intergovernmental organisations, private sector, technical communities, academia and civil society.

Programme architecture

• Raise awareness and promote better understanding of the Smart Cities Security concept.
• Build and strengthen stakeholder capacity to participate in smart-city development processes.
• Facilitate multistakeholder discussions, exchanges and collaboration on Smart Cities Security issues.
• Discussion panels: Cyber management, Information sabotage and Data security.

Speakers, chairs and institutional network

• Organising Committee: Cătălin Vrabie and Parvin Neginraz.
• Partner: Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Romania.
• Scientific committee and reviewers team includes Vasile Baltac, Lasse Berntzen, Nicoleta Corbu, Stanisław Wrycza, Adrian Florea, Marta-Christina Suciu, Florina Pînzaru, Jacek Maślankowski, Florin Codruț Nemțanu, Dragoș Dincă, Sergiu Țâra, Diana Mariana Popa, Cătălin Vrabie and Andrea Beccalli.

Core panels and topics

• Cyber management
• Information sabotage
• Data security
• Privacy and security in smart cities
• Stakeholder capacity building
• Multistakeholder collaboration
• Smart-city security as a public concern

Selected contributions and key moments

• The conference follows the long series of Smart Cities events started by the Faculty of Public Administration.
• It formalises cybersecurity as a specific topic within the smart-city conference ecosystem.
• It introduces the three core discussion panels that continue in later editions.
• It sets the conference’s interdisciplinary and multistakeholder identity.

Research focus

• Privacy and security in smart cities.
• Cyber management and public-sector cybersecurity.
• Information sabotage and public trust.
• Data security and citizens’ digital rights.
• Multistakeholder governance of smart-city security.
• Capacity building for security-aware smart-city development.

Public and academic relevance

• Launches the Securing Smart Cities / TRUST conference line.
• Links smart-city security to citizens’ lives, privacy and public administration.
• Creates the conceptual basis for later editions on AI, cybersecurity and machine intelligence.
• Defines the initial objectives and discussion panels of the series.