Cybersecurity is one of the main concerns in politics and society today and, with the advance of technology and digitalization and the growing interconnectivity between the state, citizens, and companies, threats have gained a systemic dimension that requires new and layered approaches.
First and foremost, to combat the so-called "digital divide", because while some entities manage to invest heavily in cybersecurity and remain cyber-resilient, others face significant difficulties and are increasingly vulnerable to attacks. But because we are a interconnected economy, the vulnerabilities of some invariably end up becoming the vulnerabilities of others.
In this context, one of the main concerns of national cybersecurity policies should be precisely to mitigate the disparities in resources and capabilities between different organizations and the challenges that the relationship between them raises. Indeed, large companies and government institutions can dedicate the necessary investments and budgets to adopting advanced cybersecurity technologies, creating specialized teams, and providing frequent training programs for their people. However, small and medium-sized businesses, non-profit organizations, or local governments are often faced with limited resources and are unable to implement the solutions needed to mitigate the risks associated with cyber threats, which are constantly evolving.
The World Economic Forum, in a report released last January, emphasizes that "although dialogue between business leaders and cybersecurity executives has made important progress, the truth is that significant disparities persist between countries, industries, and sectors, which require ongoing attention and collaboration."
In other words, even if the best-prepared and well-funded organizations become more cyberresilient, those that can't keep up become easier targets, putting not only their integrity at risk, but can also contaminate the economic ecosystem in which they operate and, consequently, jeopardize national security and the country's stability.
These challenges are relevant because there is neither sufficient coordination nor cooperation between the state and the economy and, even more difficult, between states, since threats increasingly do not recognize borders and are made from different jurisdictions. What's more, the threats are no longer just to systems, but also to content, a challenge that is becoming even more relevant with the increasing use of AI-based systems and generative AI. Added to this is the fact that the quest for increased cybersecurity often conflicts with the rights to privacy and freedom of expression, in what is yet another of the balances in this complex equation in which the efforts to develop international standards and agreements have come up against issues of sovereignty, geopolitical interests and rivalries between states.
What is needed, therefore, is a collective and collaborative commitment between the government, companies, and civil society so that, together, we can face up to this challenge and guarantee a safer and more resilient digital environment for our collective future.
It's an issue that, unfortunately, has been left out of the political discourse and the election campaign, but which should be paid attention to by our future leaders because the problem is really serious. But it has a solution.
The original opinion article was published on O NOVO - Sapo, in Portuguese.
You can access it here.