- Reset +

President Ilves in Davos: countries must work together to combat cyber attacks

20.01.2016

President Toomas Hendrik Ilves who takes part in the World Economic Forum today in Davis, Switzerland, spoke at a panel on cyber security, which involved the discussion of possible attacks against critical infrastructure, including power stations, financial institutions, transport systems, telecommunications networks and government institutions.

The Estonian Head of State admitted that international agreements and conventions are hard to achieve and provide the framework required for the mitigation of cyber risks, yet the implementation of legal agreements in reality is even more complicated and difficult.

According to President Ilves, one of the problems is the lack of will in some countries to endorse the conventions and this often makes it impossible to solve crimes and bring cyber criminals to justice.

"We do have the Budapest Convention, which offers some tools to fight cyber crime and enter into international co-operation in this sphere; unfortunately, several countries where cyber crimes often stem from, according to experts, have not endorsed the convention," emphasised the Estonian Head of State.

He took part in a discussion facilitated by Kirstjen Nielsen, a Senior Fellow from the US Center for Cyber and Homeland Security, with various top cyber security specialists from the United Kingdom, Japan, Switzerland and the USA also present.

Office of the President
Public Relations Department