TIRANA, March 20 /ATA/ Deputy Parliament Speaker, Ermonela Felaj Valikaj, the chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for European Integration, Jorida Tabaku, and MP Plarent Ndreca, participated in a technical level meeting entitled “Cyber Security and Multi-Sectorial Responses to Threats and Cyber Terrorism.”
This meeting was organized by the Institute for Activism and Social Change, with the support of the Small Grants Program of the Commission for Democracy, the embassy of the United States of America in Tirana. In attendance were also representatives of various institutions in the relevant field for cyber protection and security.
In her opening remarks, Deputy Parliament Speaker Felaj said that, just like in any developed country in this field, the use of information and communication technology in Albania is growing every day and has become irreplaceable.
“What is very important to emphasize is the necessity for cooperation between public and private institutions in order to respond to critical situations. The capacities so far have not been sufficient to guarantee a high level of security in networks and information systems, therefore the first response from the government has consisted in the legislative aspect,” she said.
“A law that reflects new realities and that through the National Authority Responsible for Cyber Security, the structure that will monitor security at the national level, the other structure that will deal with emergency situations and cyber crisis situations, together with the best incentives made available for the human capacities in this structure, will elevate to another level the response to cyber security challenges,” Felaj pointed out.
The Chair of the Parliamentary Committee for European Integration, Jorida Tabaku, emphasized that in the process of establishing the umbrella for cyber security, we need to draw a dividing line with the protection of personal data.
“We need to ensure that their protection is not compromised given that in the past years unfortunately there have been cases of data leaks in Albania. The new law on cyber security, which is in the light of approximation of the legislation, was also included in the plan of legal acts for the current period, so this discussion today comes at the right moment”, said Tabaku.
According to her, “we must take care to safeguard the independence of the institutions in this legislation. We must do our best to set up mechanisms to make it possible and facilitate the work in cyber security”.
MP Plarent Ndreca pointed out that the new law on Cyber Security is a law associated with many challenges, such as structuring several interests related to the fast-evolving technological developments, but also the need for modernize the governance, without infringing on the fundamental human rights and freedoms.
/m.m/r.e/sm/
