CYBER DIALOGUE 2014   |   MARCH 30 - 31, 2014


The Cyber Dialogue conference, presented by the Canada Centre for Global Security Studies at the Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto, convened an influential mix of global leaders from government, civil society, academia and private enterprise to participate in a series of facilitated public plenary conversations and working groups around cyberspace security and governance.

After Snowden, Whither Internet Freedom?

A recent stream of documents leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden has shed light on an otherwise highly secretive world of cyber surveillance. Among the revelations — which include details on mass domestic intercepts and covert efforts to shape and weaken global encryption standards — perhaps the most important for the future of global cyberspace are those concerning the way the U.S. government compelled the secret cooperation of American telecommunications, Internet, and social media companies with signals intelligence programs.

For American citizens, the NSA story has touched off soul-searching discussions about the legality of mass surveillance programs, whether they violate the Fourth and Fifth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, and whether proper oversight and accountability exist to protect American citizens' rights. But for the rest of the world, they lay bare an enormous “homefield advantage” enjoyed by the United States — a function of the fact that AT&T, Verizon, Google, Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo!, and many other brand name giants are headquartered in the United States.

Prior to the Snowden revelations, global governance of cyberspace was already at a breaking point. The vast majority of Internet users — now and into the future — are coming from the world’s global South, from regions like Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. Of the six billion mobile phones on the planet, four billion of them are already located in the developing world. Notably, many of the fastest rates of connectivity to cyberspace are among the world’s most fragile states and/or autocratic regimes, or in countries where religion plays a major role in public life. Meanwhile, countries like Russia, China, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, India, and others have been pushing for greater sovereign controls in cyberspace. While a US-led alliance of countries, known as the Freedom Online Coalition, was able to resist these pressures at the Dubai ITU summit and other forums like it, the Snowden revelations will certainly call into question the sincerity of this coalition. Already some world leaders, such as Brazil’s President Rousseff, have argued for a reordering of governance of global cyberspace away from U.S. controls.

For the fourth annual Cyber Dialogue, we have invited a selected group of participants to address the question, “After Snowden, Whither Internet Freedom?” What are the likely reactions to the Snowden revelations going to be among countries of the global South? How will the Freedom Online Coalition respond? What is the future of the “multi-stakeholder” model of Internet governance? Does the “Internet Freedom” agenda still carry any legitimacy? What do we know about “other NSA’s” out there? What are the likely implications for rights, security, and openness in cyberspace of post-Snowden nationalization efforts, like those of Brazil’s?

As in previous Cyber Dialogues, participants were drawn from a cross-section of government (including law enforcement, defence, and intelligence), the private sector, and civil society. In order to canvass worldwide reaction to the Snowden revelations, this year’s Cyber Dialogue will include an emphasis on thought leaders from the global South, including Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.

BLOG - News from The Dialogue

March 1st, 2013 // Arms Trade as Analogy – by James Lewis

I worked on a project to restrict access to or exports of software (and this was software that the US considered to be a munition). It was impossible to control – there were so many ways to beat any restrictions, … Continue reading

February 26th, 2013 // Global Governance and Cyberspace: Fortresses or Oases? – by Paul Meyer

Among the speeches that marked the opening of the 12th World Conference on International Telecommunication (WCIT) on December 3, 2012 in Dubai was that of Fadi Chehadé, President and CEO of ICANN (International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) the … Continue reading

February 26th, 2013 // A Scene from the Road to Cyber Governance: The Budapest Cyberspace Conference – by Roger Hurwitz

As norms and governance for cyberspace have grown more problematic, the forums at which they are discussed have multiplied. Besides their recurrent discussion among the United Nations Government Group of Experts (GGE) on Information and Telecommunications, and at the Internet … Continue reading

September 19th, 2012 // Highlights from Cyber Dialogue 2012: What is Stewardship in Cyberspace?

On March 18-19, 2012, the Canada Centre for Global Security Studies at the Munk School of Global Affairs convened a public forum entitled What is Stewardship in Cyberspace. This video presents highlights of the two day event. Continue reading

May 31st, 2012 // Cyber Intrigue: The Flame Malware International Politics

Over the coming days and weeks, security experts will deconstruct Flame and explain what it can and can’t do. This work ongoing, it is also important to consider the politics of Flame, as they matter as much if not more. Continue reading

March 23rd, 2012 // Thank You Message from the Director

Dear Conference Participants, On behalf of the Citizen Lab and Canada Centre for Global Security Studies at the Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto, we would like to thank you for your participation in the Cyber Dialogue Conference … Continue reading

March 17th, 2012 // Welcome Message from the Director

Dear Participant, It is a pleasure for me to welcome you to the Cyber Dialogue conference in Toronto, Canada from March 18 to 19, 2012. The conference is hosted by the Canada Centre for Global Security Studies at the Munk … Continue reading

February 14th, 2012 // Cyber Dialogue 2012 – March 18 & 19

What is Stewardship in Cyberspace? Cyberspace – the global domain of digital electronic telecommunications – is nearing a turning point. Pressure is building towards a “constitutional moment”. Major governments have begun to debate what should be the “rules of the … Continue reading

July 8th, 2011 // Cyber Dialogue 2011: Video Highlights

On March 27-28 2011 the Canada Centre for Global Security Studies at the  Munk School of Global Affairs and the SecDev Group (Ottawa) convened a  public forum entitled Securing the Cyber Commons: a Global Dialogue . The event brought together … Continue reading

February 4th, 2011 // Canada Centre Announces Annual Cyber Security Forum

The Canada Centre for Global Security Studies (Canada Centre) at the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto in conjunction with The SecDev Group, is convening an annual Cyber Security forum. This year’s forum is entitled “Securing … Continue reading