It is the governments’ responsibility to help keep law and order. Nevertheless, the sheer complexity of cyberspace has shown that authorities do not and will not have all the skills required to fight the cybercrime threat on their own. Indeed, many of the necessary skills are found in the private sector. Therefore, private sectors must be a part of the collaborative efforts and partnership against cybersecurity threats.
Trying to prevent and detect cyber mishaps requires a wide range of technical talents and expertise. In many countries, cybercrime events often result in the theft of personal data or customer service interruption. It may constitute a crime or result in regulatory action. There are many reasons why businesses attacked may choose not to disclose cybercrime to law authorities and instead seek help from the private sector.
The Loophole In The Cybersecurity Arena
For cybercrime investigations, jurisdiction is often ambiguous. A crime that happens in a physical place means that the perpetrators are physically present, yet in cyberspace, criminals may reside in one nation, commit crimes in another, and leave a trace in a third. In many cases, government authorities often lack authority to pursue all elements of internet crimes, while private businesses with worldwide operations routinely operate beyond national borders. Furthermore, cybercriminals utilize privately held infrastructure to commit their crimes. As a result, the business sector may be of considerable help in combating criminal activity.
Simultaneously, the private sector cannot supersede police enforcement. Private-sector businesses can prevent, investigate, and reduce illegal behavior, but they cannot penalize bad actors. Only proper the authorities have the authority to arrest, prosecute, and otherwise deal with cybercriminals. In the current environment, the only way ahead is to allow greater operational cooperation between the public and private sectors to fully avail all parties of all the tools and jurisdictions required to decrease cybercrime effectively.
Attacks That Lead To Partnership Realization
The Colonial Pipeline, the largest pipeline in the United States responsible for carrying almost half of the gasoline consumed on the East Coast, was forced to shut down due to a ransomware attack. Across the region, there was fuel scarcity and frenzied stockpiling. In North Carolina, almost two-thirds of the state’s gas stations were out of fuel, and people reported mile-long lines at the pump.
Aside from the Colonial Pipeline attack, hacking in the food processing business JBS and the attack on the IT firm Kaseya point to a dangerous escalation. In its early phases, an attacker used to target a small business and demand a few hundred bucks in ransom money. Both the number of victims and the amount of money sought by hackers in ransomware attacks are now in the millions. These attacks often succeed not because adversaries outmaneuver barriers, but many unpatched vulnerabilities are available for exploitation.
The Power Of Partnership In Battling Cybercrimes
Different organizations want to improve cybersecurity measures due to privacy concerns and fear of possible costly repercussions. The lack of common standards for evidence gathering and a fear of losing a competitive edge also drive the need for better cybersecurity measures. The absence of defined frameworks or norms for public-private collaboration may lead to misunderstandings about roles, duties, and the goal of collaboration. Concerns about liability and antitrust may add another degree of complication. These unsolved problems exacerbate the challenges of establishing a successful partnership against cybersecurity threats.
In the United States, the National Security Agency (NSA) aims to deal with these impending dangers online and generate a framed counter-pressure on cybersecurity. The agency addressed its role in the nation’s joint response to potential hostile cyber operations in a recent statement at the Annapolis Cybersecurity Summit held this year. They aim to equip society to restrict and endure in this kind of scenario, making the effects of this ill-conduct less disruptive to everyone. Moreover, they have issued a call for collaborative efforts in all sectors.
NSA is changing how it handles cybersecurity to collaborate with the private sector to detect hostile cyber actors seeking to undermine government and civil society. They believe those insights are worthless unless they are translated into action.
Similarly, there has been a deep drive in both the public and commercial sectors to strengthen this collaboration in recent years. INTERPOL, Europol, and a number of national law enforcement organizations have expanded their partnership against cybersecurity threats with the different business sectors. Another potential method is to bring together many stakeholders in a single collaboration framework to track down hackers and stop disruptive assaults.
One Step Ahead Of Cybersecurity Threats
Applying this strategy on a much larger scale by forming a global public-private alliance against cybercrime could aid in achieving a level of cooperation capable of meeting current and growing needs. An alliance may enhance collaboration by developing and inventing methods to remove obstacles while promoting a common goal.
The only way to combat cybercrime is for the public and private sectors to work together. The business sector plays a critical role in understanding and combating cybercriminals. Only by guaranteeing that major businesses collaborate with law enforcement will we adequately react to the cybersecurity challenges.
References:
1. https://www.wartsila.com/insights/article/collaboration-is-the-best-weapon-to-fight-cyber-threats-in-the-maritime-industry
2. https://vienna.usmission.gov/the-importance-of-strong-public-private-partnerships-in-the-fight-against-cybercrime/
3. https://www.weforum.org/reports/partnership-against-cybercrime
4. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/01/partnerships-are-our-best-weapon-in-the-fight-against-cybercrime-heres-why/
5. https://www.interpol.int/en/Crimes/Cybercrime/Public-private-partnerships
