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Inside Olympic Cybersecurity: Lessons From Paris 2024 to Milan Cortina 2026 Discover how Franz Regul, former CISO for the Paris 2024 Olympics, tackled unique cybersecurity challenges to protect the Olympics from evolving threats. Kristina Beek , Associate Editor , Dark Reading March 16, 2026 Source: Dark Reading At a Glance Protecting the Olympics' opening ceremony, the most-watched global event, from targeted attacks. Building cyber solidarity across public agencies, partners, and sponsors. Implementing robust security measures to ensure smooth Olympic operations. The Olympics are a global spectacle, uniting nations through the thrill of competition and the celebration of human achievement. During this year's Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games we watched Alysa Liu reclaim figure skating, a sport she once left behind, landing in first place. The US women's and men's ice hockey teams took gold, ending a 46-year Olympic drought for the latter. Lucas Pinheiro Braathen won gold in the men's giant slalom, bringing home the first Winter Olympics medal for Brazil. And on the seventh day of the Paralympic Winter Games, host country Italy surpassed its previous high score of 13 medals, bumping their tally up to 14. But behind the scenes, there was a lesser-known battle being fought — a battle against cyber threats that could disrupt the Games and tarnish their reputation. Franz Regul, former CISO for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games , knows this fight all too well. In this Heard it From a CISO interview, he shares the challenges, strategies, and lessons learned from protecting one of the world's most high-profile events, and what was likely top priority for defenders during the 2026 Games. Related: Cybersecurity Predictions for 2026: Navigating the Future of Digital Threats Cybersecurity at the Olympics is no small feat. With thousands of athletes, even more spectators, 10,000 workstations, and countless interconnected systems, the stakes are incredibly high. Regul explained how his team worked tirelessly to prepare for Paris's global event and ensure the Games ran smoothly, from safeguarding critical IT infrastructure to protecting the physical safety of spectators and athletes. The opening ceremony, often dubbed “Ground Zero” for cyber threats , was a particular focus, as bad actors see it as a prime opportunity to disrupt the most-watched event in the world. But the work didn't stop there. Regul emphasized the importance of collaboration and communication, both within the organizing committee and with external partners. Building "cyber solidarity" among public agencies, sponsors, and infrastructure operators was key to creating a unified defense against potential threats. From sharing real-time threat intelligence to securing temporary venues, the effort required a level of teamwork and trust that extended far beyond traditional cybersecurity practices. Perhaps the most striking takeaway from the interview was Regul's belief that cybersecurity is fundamentally about people. Technology and processes are important, but it's the human element — trust, teamwork, and mutual support — that truly makes the difference. As he transitioned to his current role at BPI France, this philosophy continues to guide his approach, proving that the lessons learned from the Olympics are not just relevant to global events but to the broader world of cybersecurity as a whole. Related: Why a 17-Year-Old Built an AI Model to Expose Deepfake Maps This is part of Dark Reading's ongoing Heard It From a CISO video series, which features frank, exclusive conversations with cybersecurity leaders in the trenches. Check out the entire series here . Heard It From a CISO With Franz Regul: Full Transcript This transcript has been edited for clarity and length by Informa TechTarget's internal AI assistant. For the full experience, please watch the video. Dark Reading's Kristina Beek: Hi, everyone. I'm Kristina Beek. I'm an associate editor with Dark Reading, and I'm here for another episode of Heard It From a CISO, where I'm joined by Franz Regul. Thank you so much for being on this episode. I so appreciate it. Franz Regul : Thank you. DR's Kristina Beek: Let’s just get started with some of the basics. Can you introduce yourself and tell me about the work you're currently doing? Franz Regul : Yeah, of course. I'm currently the chief information security officer for BPI France, which is a French investment bank, basically the French sovereign fund. I've been doing this job for the past year. Before that, I used to be the chief information security officer for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. I did that for close to five years. Related: Attackers Abuse LiveChat to Phish Credit Card, Personal Data DR's Kristina Beek: So, what does the beginning of your journey in cybersecurity look like? How did you get involved in cybersecurity? Was it part of your educational background or was it just a personal interest of yours? Franz Regul : Well, I'm old enough that cybersecurity was not a thing when I studied. I began my career in system engineering . I did a lot of safety and reliability in industrial systems, so I had an initial mindset well-suited for cybersecurity. In the early 2000s, when we began to switch from information security to cybersecurity, I had a great opportunity to work first in digital trust — things like digital signature and dematerialization — and then to switch to true cybersecurity in the banking sector. DR's Kristina Beek: OK, awesome. So how did you become involved with cybersecurity for the Paris Olympics? Part of my huge interest in interviewing you is because the Winter Olympics are currently happening, and I'm curious about the cybersecurity of it all. How did you become involved in that? Franz Regul : A lot of luck, actually. I had a very good position within a great French bank, and it was the end of a cycle. I had achieved great things and worked for many years on the topic, and then it was pretty quiet with some changes on the horizon. At that moment, they published the position on LinkedIn , and I told myself, "This is one thing I must absolutely apply to because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. At the very least, I want to see what they are talking about, what they are expecting us to do." I met with Bruno Marios, a French Olympian and the guy in charge of everything technology for the Games, and it was a great match. They proposed I join the crew, and I told myself, "I have to do that. It's simply something I cannot overlook." DR's Kristina Beek: In terms of building that team, did you have any input on who was going to be involved in the cybersecurity team protecting the Paris Olympics? Franz Regul : Yeah, that's part of the challenge. It is a very specific context. Sporting events generally speaking, do not have the level of exposure to cybersecurity risk that the Olympics and Paralympics have. There is basically no white book on how to do cybersecurity for such an event. You have to rely on your experience, your ability to think outside the box, and address the various challenges as they come. We had a lot of discussions with the International Olympic Committee. We had some limited exchanges with the team from Tokyo, the Olympic Games before ours. For the most part, we learned as we went. It's a fascinating experience because, on one hand, you do cybersecurity by the book. You have to build from the background up every single IT system so you can do things cyber-secure by design. On the other hand, you face challenges and risks that are very specific to the sports event environment. For example, you have to secure actual sporting venues — things that are basically computers with people in them — and there is no white book for that either. DR's Kristina Beek: How would you