Cyber security debates heat up Prepcom3
<b>By Emrakeb Assefa</b>
-Highway Africa News Agency - Geneva

As the third WSIS preparatory committee enters its second week, Internet 
security is one the most contentious issues currently under debate in Geneva.

Government representatives and civil society are meeting in Geneva from 
September 15 to 26 to come up with a draft Declaration of Principles and a Plan of Action to be tabled to the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in December.

Pushed by the US, Swedish and Pakistan representatives, a proposal on the action plan was endorsed today that stressed the role of the governments in building confidence, trust and security in the use of Information, Communication Technologies (ICTs). The amended version of the Plan of Action says that policy framework for information society should takes steps to promote cooperation between governments and all stakeholders at all appropriate multilateral forums to develop guidelines that enhance user confidence, build trust, and protect both data and network integrity.

?The US and Pakistan proposal to change ?all stakeholders? into ?governments and other stakeholders? was accepted because it is really the governments that do everything in security matters in ICTs,? Ntsundeni Mexdzunya, South Africa?s government representative said.

The debates on the role of the governments and the issue of cyber security took up the whole of yesterday and today. The Russian delegation succesfully managed to have the cyber security clause deleted from the document in the face of strong support for the provision from the US camp. The provision now reads as saying ?governments and all stakeholders will take appropriate action at national and international levels on spam".

The amendment made in the Action Plan also removes the expectation that all stakeholders should promote the efforts of only the United Nations on ICTs and calls on them to promote the efforts at ?all appropriate multilateral forums.?

Clause C5 of the draft Plan of Action mentions confidence, trust and security as prerequisites for the Information Society. It acknowledges that a global culture of cyber-security relies not only on technology but also on education and training, policy and law as well as international cooperation.

The draft action plan looks to promote international cooperation to tackle information networks security issues. It also aims  to promote cooperation between governments and all stakeholders at all appropriate multilateral forums.