Gérald Vernez studied geology, meteorology and then security policy. After a first career as an engineer and risk manager in industry, he joined the General Staff of the Swiss Armed Forces in 1996. He prepared and trained the Federal Crisis Staff for the Y2K problem, planned the Command & Control organization of the armed forces and developed the Information Operations area. In 2009 he became Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces Joint Staff and in 2011 Deputy Director for the development of the first national strategy for the protection of Switzerland against cyber risks. As the Chief of the Armed Forces’ delegate for cyberdefence since 2013, he planned and coordinated the development of this area. In 2016, while leading the task force that managed the cyberattack against RUAG, he became the DDPS delegate for cyberdefence for which he developed and implemented the first cyberdefence action plan in 2017, ensured its revision in 2018, and then led the development of the new strategy in force since 2021. Expert and trainer in security policy for our digitally mutating society, Gérald Vernez is founder and director of the digiVolution Foundation (www.digivolution.swiss), a new force for strategic thinking and action created at the end of 2020.