Security Day 2025: From Spies to Smartwatches

How Human Weakness and AI Power Are Redefining National Security. First Line of Defense Begins at Work

At Sweden’s Security Day 2025, the message was clear: the most dangerous threats are no longer the ones we can see. They’re embedded in our devices, our habits, and even our assumptions. Hanna Linderstål, founder of Earhart and advisor to international cybersecurity bodies, opened the day with a chilling observation: “We have a digitalization we can’t grasp or influence.” In a world where public officials procure critical systems without fully understanding their vulnerabilities, the question isn’t just who owns the data—but who controls it, who can read it, and who can weaponize it.

Her investigation into Sweden’s medtech sector revealed a systemic blind spot: security is often an afterthought. Systems are procured without guarantees for updates, resilience, or even basic oversight. “We hope the person responsible has a good security mindset,” she said. “But we don’t really know.” This uncertainty is compounded by what she calls “digital dependence”—a reliance on foreign platforms and technologies that may not share our democratic values. The enemy, she warned, is often already among us.