Worldwide Cyber Security Measures Needed says ITU

VIP LOUNGE

CLOUD LOGIN

You are here: News > News > Worldwide Cyber Security Measures Needed says ITU

» IT Security NEWS

» 24 May 2009

Worldwide Cyber Security Measures Needed says ITU

The ITU (International Telecommunication Union) has recently released its proposition for standardizing and unifying global cyber security laws on the background of a Geneva meeting by the information society. During the discussion, ITU General Secretary Hamadoun Touré clarified that the "Cyber Security Toolkit" document should not be considered a Bible or Koran on cyber security legislation but should instead provide a record of best practices for existing cyber security regulation.

Led by the American Bar Association's PACC (Privacy and Computer Crime Committee) and an expert group specially formed and commissioned by the ITU, the document on harmonizing global Internet security rules was drafted and written with due consideration of the existing cyber security laws of many different countries.

PACC manager Jody Westby understood that careful deliberation must be made in creating the document because it will be used as a blueprint for national legislation. Aside from the Council of Europe's "Convention on Cyber Crime", the group's search for model regulation took the legislation to many other countries, including China, Canada, and Australia.

According to a representative from Brazil (who decided against agreeing to the Council of Europe's judgment), using the Council of Europe's convention as the sole basis for the proposal is not enough for it to become an all-inclusive global model, especially considering certain conditions like the requirements on intellectual property.

The ITU is also advertising its own early warning system for military operations within the Internet that was developed by IMPACT (International Multilateral Partnership against Cyber Threats) alongside its proposal for universal cyber security legislation.

Touré affirmed that IMPACT is an organization backed by the Malaysian government that was formed mostly because of cyber attacks like the one performed on Georgia's president by Russian hackers. He adds that IMPACT offers a news service on such virtual invasions to all ITU member states, which should provide the essential information needed to detect and quell these acts of cyber terrorism at an early stage.

As part of this special anti-hacker program, Microsoft is also willing to provide governments and ITU member states all the restricted data on the function of propriety Microsoft products they need depending on their current security issues.

At any rate, if worse comes to worst, the universally networked, anonymous Internet as we know it will soon be replaced by a regulated and monitored worldwide web by which the cloak of anonymity is ultimately lifted. Let us hope that events don't have to reach that point.