CybersecurityDigital dark age fears stoked by Davos elite doing little to address cybersecurity
Business leaders who recently convened in Davos for the annual World Economic Forum fretted over the various catastrophes that could hit the globe hard and – given the recent spate of cyberattacks – cybersecurity was high up on the agenda. The end result was the launch of a Global Center for Cybersecurity (GCC) with a clear mission to “prevent a digital dark age.” The GCC undoubtedly offers a reasonable proposition to nation states, by urging them to collaborate on overcoming cyber threats in a coordinated way. But for such a noble goal to work, it requires deeper resolve to deliver and a level of national commitment unprecedented over previous efforts. Given the increased global uncertainty, we are yet to have faith.
Business leaders who recently convened in Davos for the annual World Economic Forum fretted over the various catastrophes that could hit the globe hard and – given the recent spate of cyberattacks – cybersecurity was high up on the agenda.
The end result was the launch of a Global Center for Cybersecurity (GCC) with a clear mission to “prevent a digital dark age.” It claims to be the first platform for cybersecurity coordination on a global scale, bringing together governments, business and law enforcement agencies. The importance of cybersecurity is growing not only for traditional computer networks but also for “artificial intelligence, robotics, drones, self-driving cars and the Internet of Things”.
Cyberattacks are like any other crime, except that the origins and reach can be global. Put simply, a cybercriminal in one country can reach out to target victims at the other end of the world. Likewise, a gang of cyber criminals could organize themselves across several countries to target their victims.
It’s the unfortunate reality of the connected world we live in, where the internet doesn’t only provide connectivity but also anonymity and transient access, all of which serve to enable such attacks.
On top of that, parallel structures over the internet – known as the dark web – have emerged to facilitate cyberattacks of all kinds, allowing a black economy to thrive and be marketized.
This year’s Global Risk Report places cyberattacks in the top five global risks, behind only extreme weather events and natural disasters. The World Economic Forum said: “Most attacks on critical and strategic systems have not succeeded – but the combination of isolated successes with a growing list of attempted attacks suggests that risks are increasing. And the world’s increasing interconnectedness and pace heightens our vulnerability to attacks that cause not only isolated and temporary disruptions, but radical and irreversible systemic shocks.”
It’s clear that a globally coordinated approach to cybersecurity is essential.
While this is laudable, there have been similar efforts over the past decade or so – with mixed results. The Budapest Convention on Cybercrime, launched in 2001 by the Council of Europe, was one such attempt to align laws and to enable a key provision of securing digital evidence across jurisdictions to effectively resolve investigations. Harmonization, however, has been a challenge with competing regional efforts emerging in various parts of the world.
