Swiss Cyber Storm
Swiss Cyber Storm is a Swiss non-profit association that hosts an annual cybersecurity conference at Kursaal Bern for security professionals from students to CISOs, and operates the Swiss Hacking Challenge as Switzerland's qualifier for the European Cyber Security Challenge.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersBern, Switzerland
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Swiss Cyber Storm does
Swiss Cyber Storm is a Swiss non-profit association that operates the annual international Swiss Cyber Storm Conference at Kursaal Bern, complemented by the Swiss Hacking Challenge (Switzerland's official national qualifier for the European Cyber Security Challenge) and co-located programming such as the AI Village. Founded as an independent association on June 13, 2013 (with conference roots dating to 2010 under Compass Security), the organization runs a single annual day-long event in October at Kornhausstrasse 3, Bern, attracting approximately 400 attendees per edition (2024 figure) and a lean 9-person team.
The organization's core product is the curated annual conference, featuring international speakers and multiple tracks with a stated focus on 'proven solutions to structural security problems' rather than just vulnerability disclosure. Secondary products include the Swiss Hacking Challenge (online qualification phases and onsite finals feeding into the Swiss national hacking team that represents Switzerland at the ECSC), the AI Village add-on event for AI-in-cybersecurity workshops and demos, and the 'SCS in a Nutshell' video interview and podcast series distributed on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Anchor. Ticket revenue is generated through direct website sales via the Pretix platform, with early bird pricing (430 CHF) and regular pricing (490 CHF) for the 2024 edition. Sponsorship revenue comes from a tiered business partner ecosystem including AWS, Swisscom, InfoGuard, Open Systems, Securosys, Swiss Post Cybersecurity, baseVISION, glueckkanja, ManageEngine, and TEMET AG, alongside a community partner network that includes ISSS, ISC2 Switzerland, CLUSIS, the Cyber-Defence Campus, Insomni'hack, and others.
The target audience spans security officers and CISOs, technical practitioners (penetration testers, security researchers), students, and young cyber talents aged 14-25. The organization's competitive positioning rests on curated content (speaker rating 3.27/4.0 in 2025), consistent attendee satisfaction (97% positive sentiment in 2025, range 89-97% across 2017-2025), and word-of-mouth acquisition (63% returning attendees, 17% colleague referrals in 2025). No financial figures are disclosed; the organization operates as a privately held Swiss association under member/board governance rather than a venture-backed or equity-funded entity.
Swiss Cyber Storm firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Swiss Cyber Storm
- Legal name
- Swiss Cyber Storm
- Website
- https://swisscyberstorm.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Swiss Cyber Storm is a Swiss non-profit association that hosts an annual cybersecurity conference at Kursaal Bern for security professionals from students to CISOs, and operates the Swiss Hacking Challenge as Switzerland's qualifier for the European Cyber Security Challenge.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Swiss Cyber Storm industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Cybersecurity Conference and Community Services
- NAICS
- Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Cybersecurity Learning Platforms (EDAFANAF)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Cybersecurity (Digital Safety, Ethical Hacking Basics) (EDAMACAH), Cyber Defense & Information Security (National Security) (BPAIAHAE)
Keywords
Where Swiss Cyber Storm is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Bern
- HQ country
- Switzerland
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Swiss Cyber Storm business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Conference Ticket Sales: Revenue generated from selling tickets to the annual Swiss Cyber Storm conference. Tickets sold through website with early bird pricing incentives.
- Sponsorships: Corporate sponsors (AWS, Swisscom, InfoGuard, and others) provide financial support in exchange for exhibition booths and brand visibility at the conference.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Early Bird Conference Ticket |
| Subscription | Annual | Regular Conference Ticket |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
Swiss Cyber Storm product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Swiss Cyber Storm is a non-profit organization that hosts the annual international Swiss Cyber Storm Conference, an annual one-day IT security event held at Kursaal Bern featuring curated international speakers, multi-track presentations, hands-on workshops, and the AI Village co-located event. The organization also runs the Swiss Hacking Challenge, a national hacking championship that identifies and selects cybersecurity talents to represent Switzerland at the European Cyber Security Challenge, and produces the SCS in a Nutshell video/podcast series.
Product overview
Swiss Cyber Storm is a non-profit organization operating primarily as a conference and talent identification entity rather than a traditional software product company. Its core offerings include the annual Swiss Cyber Storm Conference (an international IT security conference held at Kursaal Bern featuring multiple tracks, workshops, and the AI Village module), the Swiss Hacking Challenge (national hacking championship for talent identification), and management of the Swiss National Hacking Team for international competitions. Secondary offerings include the SCS in a Nutshell video/podcast series. The organization does not offer software products, APIs, or SaaS platforms.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Swiss Hacking Challenge (SHC): Switzerland's annual national hacking championship organized by Swiss Cyber Storm, serving as the official Swiss qualifier for the European Cyber Security Challenge (ECSC) and partner with ICT-Berufsbildung for SwissSkills and WorldSkills qualifications
- AI Village
- Swiss Cyber Storm 2024
- Swiss Cyber Storm 2025
- Swiss Cyber Storm 2026
Products and services
- Swiss Cyber Storm Conference Annual international IT security conference held at Kursaal Bern, Switzerland, featuring international speakers presenting on cyberattacks, defense strategies, and current security topics. The conference includes multiple tracks, workshops, networking opportunities, and an annual focus theme. The 2026 edition is scheduled for October 20, 2026 with the theme 'Shadow IT'.
- Swiss Hacking Challenge (SHC) Switzerland's annual national hacking championship that identifies and selects cybersecurity talents to represent Switzerland at the European Cyber Security Challenge (ECSC). The competition includes online qualification phases and onsite finals. The Swiss national team achieved 2nd place at ECSC 2023 in Hamar, Norway — the highest ever placement for Switzerland.
- AI Village A co-located event feature at the Swiss Cyber Storm conference focusing on artificial intelligence in cybersecurity, featuring hands-on workshops, live demos, discussions, and presentations about AI security topics.
- SCS in a Nutshell Video interview series and podcast featuring double-interviews with cybersecurity experts discussing topics with a Swiss perspective. Available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Anchor.
Quantifiable outcome
- 97% positive conference feedback from attendees
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Swiss Cyber Storm
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Swiss Cyber Storm technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Swiss Cyber Storm partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
23 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- AWScoreAmazon Web Services listed as a business partner, providing cloud infrastructure and marketing partnership support to the conference.
- baseVISIONcoreSwiss cybersecurity consulting firm listed as business partner supporting the conference.
- glueckkanjacoreGerman/Swiss IT security company listed as business partner.
- InfoGuardcoreSwiss cybersecurity company listed as business partner.
- ManageEngineminorIT management software company listed as business partner.
- Open SystemscoreSwiss网络安全公司 listed as business partner supporting the conference.
- SecurosyscoreSwiss cybersecurity hardware and software company listed as business partner.
- Swiss Post Cybersecurity AGcoreSwiss Post's cybersecurity division listed as business partner.
- SwisscomcoreMajor Swiss telecommunications company listed as business partner with focus on security jobs.
- TEMET AGminorSwiss cybersecurity company listed as business partner.
- Area41minorSwiss security conference community partner for collaboration and audience sharing.
- Black AlpsminorSwiss security conference community partner.
- CLUSIScoreSwiss cybersecurity association and community partner.
- Cyber-Defence CampuscoreSwiss government cyber defence institution listed as community partner.
- GOhackminorSwiss hacking challenge community partner.
- Insomni'hackcoreSwiss security conference community partner with long-standing relationship.
- ISC2 Switzerland ChaptercoreProfessional cybersecurity certification chapter listed as community partner.
- ISSScoreInformation Security Society Switzerland - premier professional security association community partner.
- One In Tech - SheLeadsTechminorWomen-focused cybersecurity initiative community partner.
- Security Interest Group SwitzerlandminorSwiss security interest group community partner.
- Swiss CybersecuritycoreSwiss cybersecurity organization community partner.
- Women in CyberminorWomen in cybersecurity Switzerland community partner.
- Women4CyberminorEuropean women in cybersecurity initiative Switzerland chapter community partner.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Swiss Cyber Storm competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Hack The Box: Online cybersecurity learning and capture-the-flag platform; comparable to the Swiss Hacking Challenge dimension of Swiss Cyber Storm as a modern, recurring talent-development and gamified learning channel for security practitioners.
Regional players
- TROOPERS: Long-running European (Germany-based) IT security conference with a similar intimate, expert-driven format; comparable to Swiss Cyber Storm in scope and tone but operating in a neighboring DACH market.
Direct peers
- Insomni'hack: Swiss-based cybersecurity conference (run by SCRT) operating in the same national market and overlapping with Swiss Cyber Storm on audience and sponsor pools; explicitly listed as a Swiss Cyber Storm community partner.
- Black Alps: Swiss security conference focused on offensive security, with the same national audience as Swiss Cyber Storm and listed as a community partner; competes for technical-practitioner attendance.
- Area41: Annual Swiss security conference held in Zurich, targeting a similar technical security audience and competing for the same Swiss sponsors and CISOs; community partner of Swiss Cyber Storm.
Broad incumbents
- RSA Conference: Largest enterprise cybersecurity conference globally; comparable in its solutions-oriented positioning to CISOs but at massive scale, with overlapping sponsor ecosystem (AWS, Swisscom-adjacent vendors).
- DEF CON: World's largest hacker conference, providing the global benchmark for what a security conference and capture-the-flag ecosystem looks like at scale — many of the structural elements Swiss Cyber Storm operates are miniature analogues of DEF CON.
- Black Hat: Premier enterprise cybersecurity conference with global events; comparable to Swiss Cyber Storm in function (security conference + training) but vastly larger in scale, audience, and sponsor base.
Others
- (ISC)²: Global cybersecurity professional certification body that operates the Switzerland chapter (a Swiss Cyber Storm community partner); comparable as a professional/community anchor for Swiss security practitioners.
- SANS Institute: Cybersecurity training and certification organization that runs its own conferences and community events; comparable to Swiss Cyber Storm on the talent-development and education dimension, but with a paid-training business model.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Swiss Cyber Storm social profiles
Digital presenceSwiss Cyber Storm financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Swiss Cyber Storm leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Swiss Cyber Storm funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Swiss Cyber Storm M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Swiss Cyber Storm
What does Swiss Cyber Storm do?
Swiss Cyber Storm is a non-profit organization that hosts the annual international Swiss Cyber Storm Conference, an annual one-day IT security event held at Kursaal Bern featuring curated international speakers, multi-track presentations, hands-on workshops, and the AI Village co-located event. The organization also runs the Swiss Hacking Challenge, a national hacking championship that identifies and selects cybersecurity talents to represent Switzerland at the European Cyber Security Challenge, and produces the SCS in a Nutshell video/podcast series.
Is Swiss Cyber Storm a public or private company?
Swiss Cyber Storm is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Swiss Cyber Storm founded?
Swiss Cyber Storm was founded in 2013. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Swiss Cyber Storm based?
Swiss Cyber Storm is headquartered in Bern, Switzerland, in the Europe region.
How does Swiss Cyber Storm make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Conference Ticket Sales are the primary driver. The others are sponsorships.
Who are Swiss Cyber Storm's main competitors?
Hack The Box is listed as an emerging player. TROOPERS is listed as a regional player. Direct peers are Insomni'hack, Black Alps and Area41. Broad incumbents are RSA Conference, DEF CON and Black Hat. Others are (ISC)² and SANS Institute.
Does Swiss Cyber Storm have an API?
No public API is recorded for Swiss Cyber Storm.
What industry is Swiss Cyber Storm in?
Swiss Cyber Storm's product category is Cybersecurity Conference and Community Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAFANAF, Cybersecurity Learning Platforms, with a secondary code of EDAMACAH, Cybersecurity (Digital Safety, Ethical Hacking Basics). Its NAICS code is 813 and its SIC code is 8600.