ITU Scribe Advocates Cooperation Against Cyber-Crime

The Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Dr Hamadoun Toure, has called for greater international cooperation among governments and the ICT industry to tackle the global nature of cyber-security threats.

In a statement in Lagos on Monday, Toure said that early warning of new threats on cyber-security was vital.

He said that it was critical that best practice on required corrective steps was shared in order to best protect the global information society.

Toure said such corrective steps were the values toward building a global coalition.

He said that the union was fully engaging member states and the world’s players in its activities to tackle cyber threats.

“ITU is collaborating closely with its partners to identify current challenges, consider emerging and future threats and propose global strategies to meet the goals of the Global Cyber-security Agenda (GCA),’’ he said

Toure said international cooperation was a key element of the international regulatory body’s GCA, aimed at enhancing confidence and security in the information society.

He said that the Internet and ICTs had enabled interconnection between countries, which was not possible before, hence, countries could not easily close their borders to incoming cyber threats and could not either contain those coming from within.

“Attempts to solve these challenges at national or regional levels are important but they are undermined.

“Cyber-security is as global and far-reaching as the Internet. Therefore, solutions need to be harmonised across all borders.

“This necessarily entails international cooperation, not only at government level, but also with industry, non-governmental and international organisations,’’ he said.

The secretary-general said that the recent discovery of the highly complex flame malware by Kaspersky Lab reinforced the need for a coordinated response to cyber threats.

Flame, a highly sophisticated malicious programme that is actively being used as a cyber weapon attacking entities in several countries was discovered by Kaspersky Lab experts.

This followed a technical analysis requested by the ITU into an unknown piece of malware which was deleting sensitive information.

Telecom World 2012, scheduled to hold in Dubai, from Oct. 14 to Oct. 18, and being supported by partners, such as Kaspersky Lab.

Toure said that the agenda would explore issues, such as mitigating risks posed by major coordinated cyber-attacks at the national level, the threats posed by malware such as flame, and strengthening international cooperation.

Mr Eugene Kaspersky, the Chief Executive Officer of Kaspersky Lab, will deliver a visionary keynote speech at the event, outlining the magnitude and global nature of cyber threats.

Commenting on the ITU Telecom World 2012 event, Kaspersky said that cyber-security was a key global concern facing all nations.

He said that it was crucial that international platform was provided by such a top-level event as ITU Telecom World 2012, to conduct the full and proper discussions needed to best tackle the issue.