New centre to help set security research priorities and put research results into practice

What security threats will Czechia face in the coming years, and where should research efforts be focused? The Centre for Strategic Support of Security Research (4SEC) will seek answers to these questions by bringing together the research activities of the Technology Centre Prague and the Faculty of Social Sciences at Charles University. Its main public-sector partner is the Ministry of the Interior, which is responsible for supporting security research in Czechia.

The 4SEC Centre will focus on three interconnected areas: analysing the current state and development of security research, monitoring emerging trends and anticipating future security threats, and helping to put research results into practice. Its work will include analyses of the security and defence technology market, foresight studies exploring how security threats may evolve, and recommendations on how to strengthen cooperation between researchers and security organisations and facilitate the adoption of new technologies. The Centre will focus primarily on cybersecurity, law enforcement, chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) threats, and crisis preparedness.

“Security research must respond not only to current needs but also to emerging threats. We therefore want to combine our knowledge of the research landscape with a forward-looking perspective and the specific needs of the police, fire and rescue services, and other organisations. This will help provide a stronger evidence base for decisions on research funding,” says Martin Faťun of the Technology Centre Prague.

Data to Support Research Policy Decisions

One of the project's planned outputs is the Security Research Data Centre. It will gradually bring together information on research projects, research capacities, technological trends and the practical application of research results. Analytical tools, including those using artificial intelligence, will be developed and tested throughout the project. The completed infrastructure, comprising datasets, analytical tools and user dashboards, is expected to be available by 2031.

The new Centre builds on the STRAT-SEC project, in which the Technology Centre Prague and the Faculty of Social Sciences at Charles University produced analyses and foresight studies on security research. Their existing collaboration will continue and expand to include support for the practical application of research results.

In addition to the Ministry of the Interior, the results will be used by other security-related organisations, including the National Cyber and Information Security Agency (NÚKIB), the State Office for Nuclear Safety (SÚJB), the Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic and the Police of the Czech Republic.