On April 25-28, Garmisch-Partenkirchen (Germany) hosts the 10th International Forum “State, Civil Society and Business Partnership on International Information Security”, organized by the Information Security Institute of Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) in cooperation with the Security Council of the Russian Federation. The forum brings together more than 100 scientists and experts from 13 countries, including experts of the Coordination Center for TLD.RU/РФ.
Participants in the event will try to work out common approaches and positions on key challenges facing global information security. The forum is expected to focus on considering proposals on a draft Code of Responsible Behavior of States in Information Space, while studying interpretations of the basic concepts, principles and norms of Geneva conventions for cyberspace, frameworks and tools of public-private partnership in protecting critical infrastructure. They will also take a closer look at measures to counter cyber recruiting and cyber propaganda of extremism and terrorism, as well as ways to promote the nonproliferation of cyber weapons and reduce the risk of their use.
Speakers at the opening ceremony included Vladislav Sherstyuk, Director of the Information Security Institute (MSU) and Advisor to the Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Andrei Krutskikh, the Russian President’s Special Representative for International Cooperation in Information Security, and Major General Igor Dylevsky, division head at the Russian Armed Forces’ General Staff. Reports by Mikhail Yakushev, ICANN Vice President for Russia, the CIS, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and Alexei Soldatov, Chairman of the Supervisory Council of the Internet Initiatives Development Fund (IIDF), focused on key elements of Internet addressing security. The tenth anniversary presents an opportunity to sum up results and reiterate the urgency of the forum’s agenda. The forum attaches great importance to promoting global trust in the information security area. A key segment in this field is the process of internationalizing critical Internet infrastructure governance. And here some progress has already been made: the consensus approval by all key concerned parties of a plan and the terms for internationalizing the IANA function governance has undoubtedly become a landmark episode and the first step towards an open and just international Internet governance system.
“Working out measures to build trust and cooperation is not an easy job. Not long ago, at the 7th Russian Internet Governance Forum (RIGF 2016), Professor Wolfgang Kleinwachter suggested using a process that was used some 40 years ago in preparing the Helsinki Act on Security and Cooperation in Europe as a likely prototype for a process much needed today in order to bolster cooperation and lay the foundations of international information security. Joint efforts by representatives of authorities, business and civil society at the Garmisch-Partenkirchen forum may catalyze this process. And despite the variety of opinions in the current multi-polar world on how this process could be implemented, we must be aware of our responsibility for ensuring the security of Internet users and basic human rights online, as well as securing the future of the Internet as a unique instrument of socio-economic development. That’s why a broad and multi-faceted dialogue is needed on an entire range of problems regarding information security,” Andrey Vorobyev, Director of the Coordination Center for TLD.RU/РФ, said commenting on the first day of the forum.
The Coordination Center widely uses self-regulation to improve Internet information security. For that purpose, the Netoscope project was launched in 2012 with Runet majors - Kaspersky Lab, Group-IB, Yandex, Mail.ru, Sputnik (Rostelecom), RU-CERT and the Technical Center of Internet – all vowing to combine their scientific and technological potential to fight against cyber-crime. Recently, Netoscope was joined by the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media (Roskomnadzor), an addition which promises to make the project more effective.
