Cybersecurity guide for developing countries New areas of activity are being opened up by the diversification of telecommunication and the possibilities created by extended information technology, the benefits of which should accrue to the developing countries, too. The technological and economic improvements made possible by the deployment of reliable IT infrastructures holds great promise for ordinary people. At the same time, however, they introduce an unprecedented degree of technological and management complexity. The associated significant risks must be kept under control, to avoid vitiating the very notion of progress. With technological risk, e.g. a failure of information processing and communication systems, brought about by a malfunction of accidental or malicious origin, comes an information risk, liable to undermine an organization’s ability to make use of information. An important point to bear in mind is that, while access to information technology is widespread and growing, a far from negligible part of the population remains excluded from the information revolution. The reasons for this are complex, and include cultural and financial factors, as well as, in some cases, basic difficulties such as illiteracy. More than in any other domain, training and education are crucial to democratizing information technology and combating info-exclusion. The communication interfaces will also need to be thought anew so as to serve the population better and respect the diversity of cultural contexts. Computers should be adapted to the human setting in which they must be integrated, rather than dictating a new communication order. I.1.2.2 Supporting the information revolution Information and communication technologies, like all technology, emerge and operate in a particular historical and geographical context, generally reflecting a balance within the society. The responsibility of the people involved is to support the information revolution with the tools, procedures, laws and ethics needed to deal with security and meet the expectations and needs of society. Currently, the utilization of communication media and the freedom to send and receive messages are covered by a host of partial regulations from ITU, UNESCO, the United Nations, OECD, the Council of Europe, and others. Developments in information and communication technologies and the way people use them have outpaced the regulations that govern them. There is therefore a need for an appropriate legal framework to be put in place to address such issues as: the aterritorial nature of networks such as the internet, the problems of responsibility, and the protection of privacy and of property rights. Technological evolution needs to be paralleled by an evolution of the social, political and legal order. This cursory consideration already gives an idea of the importance of the challenges created by the information age, the crucial role of telecommunication in meeting them, and the importance of dealing with security issues before they become a hindrance to development. The transition to the information age reveals the importance of information technology and makes it clear that the technology needs to be mastered. Considering the new dimensions that IT creates, in technical and socio-economic terms, it is clear that the security of IT and telecommunication systems and infrastructures has become a fundamental need. It highlights the strategic and critical nature of what is at stake in planning and implementing cybersecurity, for countries, for organizations, and for individuals. In view of the financial, material and human resources that countries have invested in creating their information and telecommunication infrastructure, it is essential for them to ensure that the infrastructure is secure, well-managed and controlled. Cyberspace and the information society 5