In a video address to NATO's annual Cyber Defence Conference on Thursday (9 October), NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte emphasised the importance of NATO and Allies continuing to grow stronger in the digital world.
"Every day, state and non-state actors are working in cyberspace against us, trying to disrupt our defences, degrade our critical infrastructure, spy on our societies, and interfere with government services", the Secretary General said.
In response to the fast-evolving, ever growing cyber threat, NATO and Allies are taking further steps to operationalise cyberspace as a domain of operations, including through the establishment of the NATO Integrated Cyber Defence Centre. The Centre brings together civil and military cyber defenders including industry on a 24/7 basis, to improve situational awareness and enhance collective resilience against cyber threats.
"NATO Allies are also stepping up their investment in cyber defence" the Secretary General said, highlighting that NATO provides a unique network through which Allies can implement responses to cyber threats. Investments aim to improve Allies' ability to detect, prevent and respond to malicious cyber activities. "No one stands alone in NATO", he said, "we all stand together in this digital age against those who would do us harm".
The conference brings together Allied senior political and military officials and industry representatives in Tirana, Albania, on 9-10 October. Fostering more decisive and pro-active cyber defence, including through closer private and public sector cooperation, and strengthening NATO's role as a platform to impose costs on malicious cyber actors are core topics of the two-day discussions.
