SOurce – ITU:

Significant progress on key issues of Internet Governance
ITU Conference gathers stakeholders from government, industry and civil society to debate international Internet public policy-related issues

Geneva, 16 May 2013 – “This year’s WTPF, with its focus on international Internet-related public policy matters, is especially timely – as we stand at a ‘tipping point’, with the Internet making the transition from a mass-market in industrialized countries, to strong demand and widespread usage around the world”, said Dr Touré, as the ITU’s fifth World Telecommunication Policy Forum concluded in Geneva today.

Dr Touré went on to say that “at WTPF, we have created a shared vision; a shared vision that can now be transformed into effective action to bring connectivity to the two-thirds of the world’s people who are still offline – and that is our bottom line, connecting the unconnected and achieving full digital inclusion for all citizens of the world.”

The WTPF was chaired by Mr. Ivo Ivanovski, Minister of Information Society and Administration, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, who was supported in his task by six vice-chairs. “The WTPF came hot on the heels of the difficult discussions in Dubai last December during the revision of the International Telecommunication Regulations (ITRs) treaty” said Mr. Ivanovski, “so it is all the more remarkable to have witnessed such an incredible and constructive spirit of cooperation and consensus. Representatives from governments, private sector and civil society have worked side-by-side, understanding what was at stake and fully focused on our common goal – nothing less than the responsibility to ensure safe and affordable access for everyone to the future Internet.”

This year’s Forum focused on the topic of Internet-related public policy issues, a theme unanimously chosen by the ITU membership at its last Plenipotentiary Conference in 2010. The Plenipotentiary is the main governance body of the ITU and meets every four years. The run-up to the WTPF included three preparatory meetings of the Informal Experts Group – a cross-sectoral, multistakeholder group, comprising some 180 experts, which advised the Forum and supported the drafting of the Secretary-General’s Report which was the main input document to the conference.

This report contained six Opinions – essentially, non-binding recommendations to guide Internet public policy – which were discussed at length and finalized in working groups and during the Plenary Sessions this week.

The Opinions cover some of the key and fundamental issues of Internet Governance today, including:

Promoting Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) as a long term solution to advance connectivity
Fostering an enabling environment for the greater growth and development of broadband connectivity
Supporting Capacity Building for the deployment of IPv6
Supporting IPv6 Adoption and Transition from IPv4
Supporting Multi-stakeholderism in Internet Governance
Supporting operationalizing the Enhanced Cooperation Process

The conference was set up into three working groups, each dealing with two opinions. Opinions one to four were finalized and endorsed ahead of time. Opinions five and six required more in-depth discussion however, particularly around the role of government in Internet governance issues. The necessity to include government is not contested by any stakeholders, but the extent of their role and responsibility opened up extensive discussions focusing on the need to balance the mitigation of risks while maximizing the undoubted opportunities provided by an open Internet.

In the end, in the words of one delegation, “perfect cannot not be the enemy of good” and it was agreed unanimously that the texts should be fully adopted and considered as important progress towards defining an efficient Internet governance system to manage the incredible global resource which the Internet has now become. An additional contribution on the role of government in the multi-stakeholder model proposed by Brazil and revised after consultation with a number of countries, received widespread support and though it was not endorsed, it was agreed that it merited further discussion beyond WTPF.

The WTPF gathered more than 900 participants together in Geneva from some 130 countries, while over 3000 people participated remotely via webcast. All sessions, including the WTPF working groups, were webcast. There was active participation during the conference, which welcomed contributions from the floor from governments, industry and civil society representatives encompassing both members and non-members of the ITU itself.

Reflecting back on the week’s work and looking forward to future challenges, Dr Touré said, “It is so impressive to see all stakeholders coming together and working in such a positive spirit of collaboration. I am proud that ITU is playing its part to champion multistakeholderism and to use its convening power to facilitate constructive dialogue. We have achieved a lot together this week and we are excited about what this will mean in terms of concrete, positive actions over the coming years”.

Source – ITU:

Cybersecurity on global agenda at information society forum

ITU develops partnerships with Member States and industry

Geneva, 16 May 2013 – Cybersecurity took centre stage at the WSIS Forum – the follow up process of the UN World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) that is currently taking place in Geneva, 13-17 May 2013.

The 2013 WSIS Forum is being held ten years after the Geneva Phase of WSIS, which took place in 2003.

The High Level Dialogue at the WSIS Forum on “Securing cyberspace in a borderless world: Vision 2015 and Beyond” focused on future strategies and actions needed for harmonized international cooperation.

Citing annual losses of over USD 100 billion being caused by cybercrime ITU Secretary-General Hamadoun I. Touré said, “In the security business, trust is key, and if we do not start to develop such a culture of trust, there will be no way that the cyber world can ever become truly safe and secure.”

Global initiatives within the framework of ITU’s Global Cybersecurity Agenda (GCA), such as Child Online Protection (COP) and the International Multilateral Partnership Against Cyber Threats (IMPACT) were reviewed.

The ITU-IMPACT Partners’ Meeting and COP Partners’ Meeting confirmed the commitment in the private sector and among civil society leaders to work together with governments and agreed on developing future activities and projects.

Ghana seeks to safeguard cyberspace

Within the framework of the ITU-IMPACT initiative, the Ministry of Communication of Ghana entered into an agreement with ITU on the establishment of a national Computer Incident Response Team, strengthening its ability to prevent and mitigate cybersecurity incidents. The project will provide Ghana with the necessary capacity and technical capabilities to build a national point of contact to respond in an effective manner to cybercrimes and cyberattacks. The project will run for six months.

”This project demonstrates the commitment of Ghana to unleash the full potential of ICT by ensuring security in cyberspace and building trust and confidence in the use of the Internet,” said Minister of Communications Edward Omane Boamah.

“This agreement will enable Ghana to join the global network that we are building to secure cyberspace,” said Brahima Sanou, Director of ITU’s Telecommunication Development Bureau. “Ghana will then become part of the solution, curbing potential cyber threats that are currently emanating from sources in Africa.”

Building partnerships

Approaching the 10-year anniversary of the Tunis Phase of WSIS, which took place in 2005, the Forum meetings took stock of progress made on the outcomes – Action Lines – of the Summit. Discussions at the Facilitation Meeting on Action Line C5, which accorded ITU the responsibility for strengthening cybersecurity, recognized the importance of building confidence in the use of ICTs in an increasingly networked society and agreed to extend the dialogue beyond the target date of 2015.

An important landmark was reached with ITU and ABI Research, a market intelligence company specializing in technology, signing an agreement to establish a Global Cybersecurity Index designed to facilitate information sharing on cyberthreats among ITU Member States.

In line with an agreement made in 2011 with Symantec, the network security company, ITU released the Internet Security Threat Report which presents Symantec data and analysis on the threat landscape and reaches new milestones in the fight against cyber threats. ITU’s ongoing commitment to publish Symantec security reports aims to appraise Member States of rising threats in cyberspace, in order to create a safer and more secure environment for all users – governments and businesses and, most significantly, children and youth.

With the aim of enhancing child online safety, ITU and the Walt Disney Company are joining forces to develop workshops to Train-the-Trainer during the Be Safe, Be Smart track of the Global Youth Summit that will take place 9-11 September in San Jose, Costa Rica.

Furthermore, a workshop organized by ITU and the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO) on the Establishment of COP National Framework, emphasized that child protection is not only a matter of safeguarding children’s rights but is a core human development component in meeting the Millennium Development Goals. ITU and CTO have established COP National Frameworks in six African Countries: Cameroon, Gambia, Ghana, Mauritius, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.

“Cybersecurity is a borderless issue that requires a global approach and concerted effort,” said Sanou. “The WSIS forum adds value as an enabling platform for international cooperation on ICT for development and for strengthening cybersecurity worldwide.”

Source – Delimiter:

Interpol filter scope creep:
ASIC ordering unilateral website blocks

The Federal Government has confirmed its financial regulator has started requiring Australian Internet service providers to block websites suspected of providing fraudulent financial opportunities, in a move which appears to also open the door for other government agencies to unilaterally block sites they deem questionable in their own portfolios.

The news came tonight in a statement issued by the office of Communications Minister Stephen Conroy, following a controversial event in April which saw some 1,200 websites wrongfully blocked by several of Australia’s major Internet service providers. . . . [Full Story]