16th SSF Security Talk | Increased federal commitment to cybersecurity: How secure is Switzerland?, February 21, 2024
The numerous participants at the 16th FSS Security Talk as part of the 6th Swiss Cyber Security Days (SCSD), which invited thousands of interested people to BERNEXPO on February 20/21, showed that the topic of cybersecurity is attracting a great deal of attention. In the recent past, the Confederation, authorities and private companies in Switzerland have had to learn from a number of painful examples just how dangerous the massive increase in attacks from the information and cyber space is and what damage they cause.
However, increased awareness of cyberattacks alone is not enough, explained Martin von Muralt, Delegate of the Swiss Security Network (SVS): "For effective crisis management, we need well-coordinated, subsidiary cooperation at all three levels of government (federal, cantonal and municipal) with clear processes and responsibilities." The upcoming Security Network Exercise 2025, where the Federal Council will be practising together with all cantonal governments for the first time, is about gaining important insights in this regard.
"The creation of the new Federal Office for Cyber Security (BACS) and the new State Secretariat for Security Policy (SEPOS) as well as the revision of the Security Information Act at the beginning of 2024 show that the Federal Council and Parliament are taking cyber issues very seriously," emphasized Florian Schütz, new Director of the BACS. The new federal offices are the natural and targeted further development of the existing institutions and a clear response from the federal government to the increased requirements in the area of cyber security.
Increasing cyber resilience is also a hot topic in the private sector, as Tobias Schoch, Chief Security Officer of the AXA insurance group, explained. "As a globally active company with thousands of jobs, AXA recognized the risks early on and invests in cyber security accordingly every year!" This pays off in any case and AXA is among the top 25 companies in terms of cyber defense.
However, the necessary change in awareness of cyber security is not yet taking place in all areas, and there is still a need for action, especially among SMEs, said National Councillor Maja Riniker and member of Sik-N: "It is therefore essential that, on the one hand, awareness and training of cyber risks is promoted, as the most common weak point is still the human being." On the other hand, there needs to be a certain destigmatization of those affected by cyber incidents, especially as there are now various contact points where professional advice can be obtained quickly in the event of a cyber incident.
National Councillor Gerhard Andrey, also a member of the SiK-N, takes a similar view, but identifies an additional danger in the case of stolen data: "This is still far too little recognized today, because in the event of a data leak, it is not only the attacked company that suffers damage, but also all the people whose data has been stolen. The resulting collateral damage to companies and individuals is often simply accepted. For this reason, he wants to work in Parliament to ensure that this issue is taken seriously.
The summary report with a detailed breakdown of the findings from the panel discussion can be found here.
The program with the panel guests can be found here.
FORUM SICHERHEIT SCHWEIZ (FSS) can look back on a successful event and would like to thank all panel guests for the exciting discussion and the Swiss Cyber Security Days for their cooperation.
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