Digital Ambassador Henri Verdier calls for the inclusion of cybersecurity into the diplomatic sphere. “We need international digital law as much as we need international maritime law”.
The digital sector is already affecting every activity, as well as the whole economy, and it is no longer acceptable to think that a national regulation can be enough to tackle the threats related to it. “This is why, explains Henri Verdier, the digital sector must be an integral part of the diplomatic sphere”. At the moment, international cooperation is organized around two pillars: a continuous exchange of research and results between allies; and traditional diplomatic efforts «aimed at creating a global “cyber peace” law, as well as a cyberwar law, building on international consensus,” points out Henri Verdier.
“We are currently experiencing something worse that the cold war”
France is well placed to support the emergence of good practices in the cyberspace. As a matter of fact, the call for trust and security in the cyberspace launched by France on 12 November 2018 has already been welcomed by 63 countries and several hundreds of private actors. “Our message is to stop the arm race”, explains Henri Verdier. “Every day, we are confronted with the risk of a cyber Pearl Harbor, and it is precisely to prevent it that we called for the establishment of a consensus. We want to prevent the private sector from selling Hack Back solutions, we want to avoid everybody taking justice into their own hands, and we want to impose the idea that economic actor must be transparent when it comes to the detection of security breaches”.
