Cyberspace Management in Pakistan
Abstract
Although security ranks high on Pakistan’s national agenda but in the increasingly complex threat milieu, cyber security usually gets relegated to the bottom rung and sometimes it is literally ignored. There is no gainsaying the fact that we ignore this vital subject only at our own peril. Given the chaotic nature of the cyberspace, it is important to manage it properly. Internet has its advantage. It has made the availability of knowledge at the click of the button. Connectivity has made life simpler at different planes, ranging from the personal to official, but has also introduced a number of vulnerabilities. Access to Internet is now considered as a basic human right. At the same time cyberspace has become the fifth dimension of warfare. In the absence of international cyber treaties and agreements, states are actively carrying out pervasive surveillance against friends and foes and launching devastating cyber-attacks. Terrorists are using cyberspace for recruitment, funding and propaganda. Criminals are having a field day in siphoning off millions of dollars from online ecommerce activity; the kid in the basement and freelancers high on digital adrenaline are hacking just for the kicks ofit. Such threats need to be responded to by coordinating cyber security activities at the national level. Robust cyber governance bodies needs to be created at all levels. Cyber leaders and advisors need to craft effective policies and enact legislations to counter the ill-effects of debilitating cyberattacks i.e. disruption of cocause the government to malfunction and make the businesses and industry lose hours of productivity among other things. Unfortunately, Pakistan is way behind other nations in putting its cyber act together. This paper discusses the voids at the policy planning level and suggests proposals to come up with a suitable strategy to respond to the emerging cyber challenges. mmunication services and damage to command and control systems that
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