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Making an impact on cyberterrorism
Malaysia takes the lead
An initiative has been started
in Malaysia to bring together governments, industry leaders and
experts to coordinate responses to attacks on cybersecurity and vital infrastructure. The International Multilateral Partnership Against Cyber-Terrorism (IMPACT) was formally launched on 20 May 2008 at the World Cyber Security Summit (WCSS), in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Speaking at the opening of WCSS, Malaysia’s Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi noted that cyberterrorism “is starkly different from common Internet crimes such as identity theft and money fraud… (it) can involve the use of technology to divert or destroy systems and infrastructure, causing injury or death, or even undermining economies and institutions.”
The Prime Minister explained that, from the start, IMPACT was envisaged as a partnership. “IMPACT is dedicated to bringing together governments, industry and academia to collectively enhance the capability of the global community to prevent and respond to cyberthreats,” he said.
IMPACT has four core activities: global response to cyberattacks; study of policy and international cooperation; training and skills development, and security certification and research. Prime Minister Badawi said that these “fit perfectly” with the five pillars of ITU’s Global Cybersecurity Agenda (GCA), “allowing ease of collaboration between both initiatives.” (See also
High-level experts set out road map for cybersecurity.)
Working with the Global Cybersecurity Agenda
At the invitation of the Prime Minister, ITU Secretary-General Hamadoun I. Touré has become a Member of IMPACT’s Advisory Board. The two men agreed to work together on building strong synergies between the initiative and the GCA. IMPACT has offered to become one of the GCA’s physical homes, and to provide services and facilities to help achieve the Agenda’s goals.
Dr Touré said “the launch of IMPACT is an example of a response initiated by Malaysia but which, at the same time, recognizes the global, borderless scope of the challenges we face in providing safe and secure virtual services”. The Secretary-General formally announced that “ITU will begin immediately to work together with IMPACT and the government of Malaysia to ensure that the cooperative efforts of GCA and IMPACT are both fruitful and effective”.
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