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Making
the world safer through technology
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| Talal
Abu-Ghazaleh, Chair of the ICC EBITT Commission, and ICC Secretary
General Maria Livanos Cattaui
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Paris,
29 October 2004
- The world could be made a safer place with the intelligent use of technology,
and by making security a responsibility of management instead of IT departments.
This was the verdict of security experts from government, business and
international organizations at a conference in Paris on Monday called
by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the world business organization.
The conference explored
practical ways for business and governments to collaborate towards a "culture
of security". While the development of such a culture is the stated
objective of the OECD's Guidelines on Network and Information Security,
issued last year, the conference acknowledged that business investment
and innovation was the only way the objective could truly be met.
Discussions among
high-level participants from all sectors of business and government -
including intergovernmental organizations such as the OECD - pointed to
the need for improved collaboration, communication and awareness for businesses
large and small to play their part in the creation of a more secure and
safe society. There was broad consensus that stimulating innovation and
appropriate security practices through market incentives would be more
successful and less costly to all stakeholders than to make specific technologies
or practices compulsory through government regulation. The main change
that attendees concurred would truly bring about a sustainable culture
of security is for enterprises to move security away from their technical
units to become a direct concern and responsibility for management.
The question of how
technology could be better used in securing life and property was explored.
A simple example of
a possible invention where the technology industry could help travellers
was proposed by the chair of the conference, Talal Abu-Ghazaleh. Since
a terrorist tried in 2001 to blow up an airliner with explosive in his
shoes, air travellers have to remove their shoes for examination before
being allowed to fly. What is needed, he said, is a device that would
check travellers' shoes without them having to take them off. If
the technology
developers could not provide such an elementary device, what prospect
is there for more advanced applications of technology?
In order to create
a society where everyone can live up to their security responsibilities
in this increasingly interconnected world, participants at the conference
agreed special attention should be paid to providing ethical education
to young people, who do not view security as seriously as older generations.
In addition, practical assistance will be needed for developing and emerging
economies to keep pace with the thinking in the US and Europe, and to
avoid them becoming the proverbial weak link that determines the strength
of the chain.
This ICC conference
was likely the most authoritative gathering of high-level government and
business ever held on security and technology. The experts came from North
America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Australia. Attendees
were unanimous that progress towards a safer world will be through cooperation
between companies; and between business, government and other stakeholders.
By pooling experience and resources they would collectively be a formidable
challenge to terrorists and other criminals.
"However understandable
the limits within which companies can share information with other companies
or governments, and despite the good reasons for countries to be hesitant
to share information of relevance to national security, this is no excuse
for failing to invest in IT technology for the enhancement of protection
of life and property," said Mr Abu-Ghazaleh. "Our life is far
too valuable to be left to reaction and remedial action. We need to be
more proactive than the terrorists"
Hopefully, the experts believed that trust could be built; and, importantly,
built on a global scale, just as crime syndicates and terrorists operate
globally. Ideally, there should be further dialogue regarding "global
governance" under the direction of a "global champion",
with the same sort of authority given to champions of the environment.
The ICC conference provided no easy answers but it did point the way forward.
For further information
on the conference Technology for security and safety: industry's role,
please visit:
http://www.iccwbo.org/home/conferences/technology_security_safety/introduction.aspMore information is
also available from:
Ayesha Hassan
Senior Policy Manager
Electronic Business, Telecommunications and IT
International Chamber of Commerce
38 Cours Albert 1er
75008 Paris, France
tel: +33 1 49 53 30 13
fax: +33 1 49 53 28 59
Email: Click here to send a mail
Commission
on E-business, IT and Telecoms
ICC
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