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Crossing Borders: Towards the Globalization of Security

Asymmetry was once a harmless geometric term. But in the 21st century it has morphed
into a frightening buzzword. It defines the fact that small cells of criminals, terrorists or
malcontents can now wreak devastation out of all proportion to their size, bringing
Internet-using organizations to their knees, holding them to ransom, invading national
security systems, and paralyzing or disrupting national service infrastructures.

The shields these malefactors shelter behind are territorial the way that laws, law enforcement and the uses of the Internet itself play out in different ways in different
nations. Terrorists, spies, phishing attackers, data thieves and vandals, far from being
impeded by the frontiers which were once bulwarks of security, now use them to evade
detection and capture.

And corporations, too, need to be aware, when their enterprises go global, that the
Internet may be a device which crosses frontiers, but it is not an instrument which
changes human nature or local culture. The credits which off shoring and outsourcing
bring to the balance sheet can be diminished by debit entries in the fields of ethics and
safety.

So how can Internet security answer these challenges and transform itself technically,
politically, legally and efficiently into a truly global force for good?

This is the key issue which will be debated at the 20th Annual FIRST Conference in
Vancouver, Canada an appropriate location, given its position as a gateway between the
Americas and Asia-Pacific.