Cybersecurity guide for developing countries This new dimension of information processing affects all areas of human endeavour and work. Both the determination of value and modes of production, from product design to distribution, have evolved in recent years. This has led to the reorganization of value chains among the different players in the economy. I.1.1.3 Infrastructure and content Controlling the digital information chain, i.e. the infrastructure and the content, has become the major challenge of the 21st century. The new market, open to all, is characterized by the unprecedented mobilization of all players in a global economy: telecommunication operators, cable operators, hardware and software manufacturers, television broadcasters, etc. The new economic challenge for today’s organization is that created by unrestrained competition and the reorganization of roles and activities. When Gutenberg printed his first book, he had no way of imaging the industrial repercussions that his invention would have; in the event, they represented the first step on the road to industrial automation. Something similar happened at the end of the 1960s, when universities and military users, each motivated by their own, ostensibly conflicting objectives, started to set up a communication network that would become the internet. Like their predecessors of the 15th century, they acted without being fully aware of the consequences of their creation. Today, cyberspace heralds the transition of societies to the information age. I.1.2 The information revolution The information revolution profoundly alters the way information is processed and stored. It changes the way organizations, and indeed society as a whole, function. It is not the only technical innovation to have taken place in recent years, but it stands out because of its impact on the processing of information, and hence of knowledge. Because the information revolution affects the mechanisms by which knowledge is created and shared, it can be viewed as the wellspring of future innovation, from which the developing countries should not be excluded. The evolution of information and telecommunication technologies leads to a genuine revolution in how we think about economic, social and cultural exchanges. It also gives us a new model of information technology based on the network, in which the security of the flow of information needs to be ensured if new applications are to be developed that will make organizations still more effective. No form of economic activity can exist without exchanges and interaction between the participants; no exchange of information is possible without some basic security guarantees; and no service can be planned without taking into account the quality of service. However, we must also bear in mind that the success of a communication depends on the ability of the parties involved to deal with the technical constraints and manage the customs that any exchange of information involves. I.1.2.1 Innovation and development Organizations and countries need to focus on innovation capacities and rapid adaptability, backed up by a powerful and secure information system, if they wish to survive and assert themselves as longterm players in the new competitive environment. 4 Cyberspace and the information society