Cyber crime presents unique challenges when it comes to issues such as jurisdiction and state sovereignty. Cyberspace spans not only national but also international boundaries, and with no jurisdictional regulation, it is complex to govern and control.
Cyber crime is a major global risk, but there is a massive law enforcement gap. Not only is much crime unseen, but the chances of these crimes being successfully investigated and prosecuted are infinitesimal. And considering cyber crime costs the global economy hundreds of billions of rands each year, this is a major problem.
Governance is needed to more effectively deal with cyber crime, and additional clauses are being added to various governance frameworks to try and ensure organisational accountability, to better secure organisations against cyber crime and cyber attacks.
This is according to Dr Trishana Ramluckan, researcher, and Brett van Niekerk, senior lecturer, from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, who will jointly present on "Cyber law and governance in an age of cyber attacks and cyber crime", at ITWeb Security Summit 2019, to be held from 27 to 31 May, at the Sandton Convention Centre.
According to the speakers, the recent surge in privacy legislation such as GDPR and POPI (and the Cyber Crimes Bill) is resulting in a need for various industry sectors to interpret the legislation and apply this through governance in a way that is applicable to their specific sector.
The increasingly stringent regulatory environment has also created another challenge concerning the right to monitor online activity and gather user information. "Although most legislation regarding cyberspace falls within the ambit of privacy or criminal law, this still presents challenges for organisations that are victims of international or state-backed cyber attacks."
These challenges need effective legal regulation to address cyber security, its technical and social complexities, including legislative frameworks, together with collaboration with the global communities, the private sector, professional educational and capacity-building.
During their presentation, Van Niekerk and Ramluckan will discuss the legal challenges related to cyber security, provide an overview of international legal frameworks and guidelines, and the implications for organisations, as cyber security is becoming a major concern as new technology models, combined with a greater dependency on technology, are driving changes in companies' approach to security.
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