Four ASEAN members Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam began a meeting yesterday in Vientiane to reach consensus on cyber security norms, strengthen operational linkages, and build capabilities.
The two-day Workshop on International Cyber Security Policy and Diplomacy for CLMV Countries was launched yesterday with support from the ICT for Peace Foundation of Switzerland.
Cyber security cooperation will help ASEAN member states to protect critical information infrastructure like the optical fibre cable backbone and the global interbank payments network. It will also support the growth of the ASEAN community.
Minister of Posts and Telecommunications Dr Thansamay Kommasith and President of the ICT for Peace Foundation Dr Daniel Stauffacher are chairing the workshop.
At the opening yesterday Dr Thansamay said information and communications technology (ICT) was very significant for Laos because the government is committed to developing and improving the living standards of its people by transforming the country from a landlocked to land linked nation.
Authorities will utilise ICT to create a favourable business and investment environment where businesses can grow leveraging ICT. We will make ICT work to support our development and empowerment, he said.
While ICT brings many new opportunities, it also opens up new vulnerabilities. Globally, cyber threats and attacks are becoming more frequent and sophisticated, with more severe consequences.
Dr Thansamay said Laos was committed to fulfilling its international obligations in order to address these global challenges.
We are also willing to contribute to the global cyber security dialogue with our experience and expertise and create new norms of responsible state behaviour and confidence building measures in cyberspace. We are committed to building a safe and secure ICT infrastructure and services in Laos, he added.
The government has recently upgraded the Lao Computer Emergency Response Team (Lao CERT) to department level, to coordinate national efforts in cyber security and the government recognises Lao CERT’s significant role in combating the cyber threat.
Lao CERT is improving its capacity building, for building a national cyber security policy and strategy, which we hope to launch next year, Dr Thansamay said.
Lao CERT engages with its counterparts regionally and globally including Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and the Asia Pacific CERT.
The key concerns for Laos remain human resource development, resilient infrastructure, general awareness, and efficient collaboration. Laos is working with the governments of other countries to block attacks, shut down networks, and to learn good practices from advanced nations.
Source: Vientiane Times
