Geneva wants to better protect humanitarian organizations from hackers
A large-scale cyberattack on the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) last year resulted in the data of more than 500,000 people being hijacked. Now, the Cyber Peace Institute, founded in 2019, wants to open a platform for humanitarian cybersecurity in Geneva.
According to Stéphane Deguin, chief executive of the 2019 Cyber Peace InstituteIn an interview with the news agency SDA, he mentioned in particular the evaluation of protective measures and the training of employees, but also the support after a cyberattack. In an interview with the news agency SDA, he mentioned in particular the evaluation of protective measures, the training of employees, but also the support after a cyberattack. With the founding of his Cyber Prevention Institute three years ago, he has already assisted several NGOs and companies. In view of the increasing danger of such attacks, a new platform for "humanitarian cybersecurity" was launched in Geneva on Monday. launches.
NGOs targeted by criminals and states
As the SDA news agency writes, according to the CEO of the cyber organization, the attack on the ICRC was "a huge wake-up call" for those who were not convinced of the importance of protecting humanitarian organizations. The ICRC was the victim of a cyberattack last year. Data on more than 500,000 people was stolen. The explosive aspect was that this data contained personal information. These were people whom the ICRC had helped during armed conflicts, natural disasters or migration. According to Deguin, this makes it all the more important to protect humanitarian organizations that could be targeted by both criminal groups and states.
Source: SDA
