In case you missed it, we are in an era that is defined by the rise of technology in different forms and aspects. From the rise of the Internet to the evolution of social media, everyone and everything is now online. Welcome to the 21st century, where innovations never stop, we only continue to create things. From artificial intelligence (AI) to virtual reality (VR), we never get enough as we explore the boundless limit around us.
The problem we have to face as we continue to develop new technologies and continue to access the internet is that it poses some security risks. For instance, there are many positive ways to use AI. However, hackers and cybercriminals can also take advantage of it to carry out cyberattacks to compromise an organization, or worse still, a country.
The many battles in politics (international politics mostly) have seen a shift from international diplomacies to cyber threats. Many countries already battle with themselves for the rulership of the cyberspace. There’s the idea that the country that rules the cyberspace rules the world.
For individuals, organizations, and countries to protect themselves from cyber threats, they have had to develop strong cybersecurity systems to help detect and protect against cyberattacks.
What is cybersecurity?
According to researchers at College paper, cybersecurity has to do with putting a functional system in place to act as defense and prevent cyberattacks.
Hackers and cybersecurity usually have strong IT skills which they use in trying to break through a security system to steal or access data or information. This opens up individuals and organizations to different levels of threats from identity theft.
How cybersecurity started to gain prominence in politics
The international political space is no longer safe waters when it comes to cyber-attacks. Cyberspace appears to be the next battleground between countries. Scuffles between countries, especially those that involve the world powers, will no longer end in a display of military power but cyberattacks. This has now brought cybersecurity to the fore and has made it more important than ever in politics. But how did it all start?
It is easy to assume that cyberattacks, hacking, and cybersecurity all became prominent after the US general elections of 2016. To some extent, that may be right but looking a little farther in history shows that were not the start of it.
Cybersecurity started to gain prominence and recognition in politics when Russia launched some cyberattacks on 27 April 2007 on the government of Estonia. They attacked the newspapers, ministries, parliament, etc. These attacks were mostly DDoS. This led the Estonian government to develop a cybersecurity system that can compete with the best anywhere.
Other incidents that made cybersecurity more important in international politics was the 2017 cyberattacks on Ukraine and France.
According to authors at best paper writing services, the attacks on Ukraine were called Petya malware. Organizations, firms, newspapers, and banks in Ukraine were all affected by these attacks. Other countries such as the UK, the US, and Australia also reported similar attacks on their systems.
There was also the cyberattack on France during the 2017 elections. It saw thousands of emails by French President, Emmanuel Macron leaked.
In both cases, the common suspect was Russia, but like the US elections before, Russia denied any involvement. However, it became even more obvious that cybersecurity is very vital in politics.
Why governments struggle with cybersecurity
There is a need for strong cybersecurity systems. But if the government of different countries continues to suffer from cyberattacks, it means that they are still struggling to come to terms with cybersecurity. According to an article in the best essay writing service, some of the reasons for this are unqualified IT staff, budget problems, and inadequate framework for network security, lack of support, and outdated infrastructure. Unless these issues are resolved efficiently, individuals, businesses, and government organizations, and the government remain vulnerable to cyberattacks.
The IT skill gap
According to a report posted on the cheap assignment writing help website, a major reason for a lack of preparedness by the government is a gap in IT skills. This refers to up to 300,000 vacant spaces for cybersecurity experts. The stiff competition in the private sector for the best talent makes it difficult to fill government cybersecurity positions. Because of this, these positions are contracted to contract workers. However, contract workers are only short term fixes. It would be better to have people employed for the role of filling it so that they can receive specific training and expand their cybersecurity capacities. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case in many government organizations.
The need for cybersecurity professionals in government
On the government level, some cybersecurity jobs need to be filled. Cybersecurity experts are important in every level of government and all departments. Their works will differ depending on the department they are in and the specific needs to be met. Some of these cybersecurity jobs include security architects, cybersecurity analysts, consultants, engineers, ethical hackers, information officers, and administrators. To ensure cybersecurity, all of these experts play a vital role. They are responsible for researching the best software which will be implemented. They also work with other teams in the installation and utilization of cybersecurity programs, look for weak spots and other areas that are vulnerable to attacks and strengthen them. Also they must find out the best strategy to use for the protection of national and confidential documents.
As cyberattacks are now an issue of when and not if, even in government due to political differences, cybersecurity has double importance in government. This is because of the confidentiality of documents in the government and the information of a large number of people that can be stolen.
What countries can do?
The reason why cybersecurity is becoming more important in government and politics is now very well understood. So, what’s the next step from here?
Firstly, countries have to start imbibing the knowledge of cybersecurity in the students as soon as possible. The knowledge of cybersecurity and its importance has to be taught to upcoming generations and the government has to allocate enough funds to get that done.
As social media is now a part of people’s daily lives, there has to be more awareness on this topic among the general populace. Social Media is one of the easiest targets for hackers and cybercriminals. So, this message has to be preached and everyone has to take cybersecurity more seriously. Individuals, especially those with some form of inclination with the government and government agencies, need to start taking appropriate measures to ensure their cybersecurity. Otherwise, cybercriminals can attack organizations and governments through individuals.
Conclusion
We are in an era where everything is online and we can do almost anything and everything on the internet. But the internet is not always a haven for individuals, organizations, and the government. Everyone is vulnerable to one form of a cyberattack or the other. So, we have to take cybersecurity more important now than ever.
Everyone has to take cybersecurity as a big deal. Because countries have now taken conflicts to cyberspace and the battle for cyberspace security is starting to emerge. From the government down to individuals. It is the only way to prevent attacks and loss of data and information.
