Putin urges closer international cyber security cooperation

MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin on Friday called for closer international cooperation in fending off cyber attacks.

Addressing a cyber security conference in Moscow, Putin said it’s important to develop common cyber security standards that take into account interests of all nations. He noted that cyber threats have mounted around the world.

“Cyber threats have reached such a scale that they could only be neutralized by combined efforts of the entire international community,” Putin said.

“We have repeatedly seen that some nations’ egoism, their attempts to act squarely to their own advantages, hurt the global information stability,” he added without specifying.

Putin pointed at Russia pooling efforts with European nations to work out an agreed mechanism of protection of personal data rules, citing it as a positive example of international cooperation.

The Russian leader didn’t address allegations that government-sponsored Russian hackers have meddled in the US 2016 presidential elections. Moscow has strongly denied interfering in the vote.

Putin noted that the number of cyber attacks on Russia has increased by one-third in the first quarter of 2018, compared to the same period last year.

He said Russia would work to develop an automated system facilitating information exchange between businesses and law enforcement agencies to help enhance cyber security.