Cyber security and use of Internet for terrorist purposes and organized crime in Montenegro discussed at OSCE-organized seminar in Podgorica
The Slovak 2019 OSCE Chairmanship and the OSCE Mission to Montenegro organized a two-day seminar on cyber/ICT security and use of the Internet for terrorist and organized crime purposes on 3 and 4 April 2019 in Podgorica.
Experts from Slovakia and the OSCE Secretariat’s Transnational Threat Department in Vienna took part in the event. They exchanged experiences and know-how with 32 participants, including seven women, from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Defence, Public Administration, Justice, Army, Agency for National Security, Agency for Personal Data Protection and Police Directorate.
“We all face vast and complex domestic, regional and global cyber security challenges and we all work tirelessly to keep all citizens and businesses safe,” said Head of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro, Maryse Daviet. “We know that the threat of today will be dwarfed by the threat of tomorrow, and so our responses too must be ever evolving. We need to be aware of that when working on plans for future actions.”
Slovak Ambassador Roman Hlobeň said that cyber threats and attacks are becoming more common, sophisticated and harmful to states. “The attacks on government websites in Montenegro in recent history are still very fresh in our minds,” Hlobeň added.
He said that with changes brought about by the digitalization and continuing globalization of computer networks, cyber/ICT security threats are becoming one of the most serious challenges of the 21st century. “With even more frequent cyber-attacks around the globe, which do not have any border controls or check-points, securing cyberspace is now a critical issue globally, for all governments, businesses, citizens and consumers,” said Hlobeň.
The seminar reflects one of the priorities of the OSCE Slovak Chairmanship to address the negative consequences of rapid technological change and build on existing commitments by promoting dialogue and exchange of expertise on cyber/ICT security.
The seminar also familiarized participants with OSCE cyber/ICT confidence-building measures that aim to reduce tensions and risks of conflict stemming from the use of information and communication technologies. It further focused on education and early recognition of radicalization and violent extremism which leads to terrorism; the impact of the internet on investigations and intelligence-gathering from a policing point of view; digital forensic evidence; the use of internet for terrorist purposes and how responding to threats on cyber related incidents.