On Monday 12th November, French President Emmanuel Macron officially launched the Paris Call for Trust and Security in Cyberspace, a high-level declaration on developing common principles for securing cyberspace.
The Global Commission on the Stability of Cyberspace is proud to count itself as being among the early supporters of this document, and as a signatory it endeavors to uphold and promote the principles and values that the Paris Call seeks to enhance. The GCSC remains committed to working alongside other stakeholders to bring about peace and stability in cyberspace, and believes that the Paris Call represents a significant step forward in ensuring the cooperation of both states and non-state actors in attaining these objectives.
The Paris Call for Trust and Security in Cyberspace brings together over 370 like-minded organizations and states in defense of the common good of digital peace. This includes not only governments but also representatives of private industry, the technical community, researchers, non-governmental organizations and civil society, reflecting a wide diversity of views and providing common ground for stakeholder groups in engaging in the dialogue of international peace and security. In this sense the Paris Call advances the dialogue and the Global Commission welcomes the commitment to a multistakeholder approach – something that it believes is key to establishing international security in cyberspace.
The Paris Call signifies an important step towards cyber stability through its call for strong pledges in support of norms of responsible behavior in cyberspace, including reaffirming the notion that international law applies to cyberspace. The Commission is also pleased to see that the text of the Paris Call contains includes six of the norms proposed by the GCSC, such as the protection of the general availability and integrity of the Public Core of the Internet, the protection of electoral infrastructure, recognition of the responsibility of private actors in strengthening the security of digital processes, products and services, the need for cyber hygiene as a foundational defense, as well as the norm against offensive cyber operations by non-state actors (no hack-back).
Furthermore, the Global Commission on the Stability of Cyberspace welcomes the affirmation and willingness of all signatories to work together, in the existing fora and through the relevant organizations, institutions, mechanisms and processes to assist one another and implement cooperative measures aimed at increasing the trust and security of users in cyberspace. The Global Commission stands ready to engage with all stakeholders – government, private sector and civil society – on how to address the international security challenges while protecting the core principles and infrastructure of the Internet.
