Yigal Unna is the former Director General of the Israel National Cyber Directorate (INCD), serving from 2018 to 2022. Appointed by Israel’s Prime Minister, he led a team of 350 people responsible for national cyber defense, policy, technological development, and training of Israel’s cyber workforce. His work included protecting critical infrastructure, smart cities, and the broader digital ecosystem. During his tenure, Unna also built long-term partnerships with foreign governments, lectured globally on cybersecurity, and appeared frequently in international media.
Unna has over 36 years of experience in national security and the private sector. Before leading the INCD, he served for 23 years in the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet/Shabak), where he retired as Director of Cyber and Signal Intelligence Operations, with a rank equivalent to Major General. He began his career in Unit 8200 of the Israel Defense Forces, the elite unit for signal intelligence and code decryption. Over three decades of public service, Unna worked exclusively in cybersecurity and data warfare.
Since leaving government, Unna has advised leading Israeli cyber startups and growth-stage companies, partnered with venture capital firms focusing on cybersecurity, and led national cyber projects for governments across Asia (notably India), Europe, Latin America, and Africa. He is President of the Israel Cyber Campus, a major training academy co-led with chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov, and President of ICE – Israel Cyber Enterprise, a Mexico-based provider of cybersecurity solutions for Mexico and LATAM.
Unna is also a member of the Global Cyber Group at the Aspen Institute and serves on the advisory team of the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue University.