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Sections
- Foreword
- Introduction
- Executive Summary
- Being Digital
- A Competitive Digital Communications Infrastructure
- Radio: Going Digital
- Creative Industries in the Digital World
- Public Service Content in Digital Britain
- Research, Education and Skills for Digital Britain
- Digital Security and Safety
- The Journey to Digital Government
- Delivering Digital Britain
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About this site
Digital Security and Safety
Introduction
“We have always had the ability to create structures that are quite bewildering to us. A good example is a city. I would say that the Internet is more like a city than anything else. In cities there are slums, there are palaces of wisdom, libraries, museums, art galleries, theatres, places of entertainment and shops. [...]
→ Read moreGlobalisation and the internet
7. The Internet is the first truly global network, connecting nearly a third of humankind – now approaching 2 billion users – worldwide. It crosses international boundaries allowing instant global communication, sharing and dissemination of information across multiple international jurisdictions at the click of a button. Cyberspace does not have national borders.
8. Many of the [...]
The national approach to digital security
23. Whilst global collaboration will be increasingly important, there remains a significant and critical role for appropriate action at the National level to help shape a safer online world.
24. Ensuring that the UK has a world class approach to digital security will bring significant benefits:
UK networks will be seen as safe and reputable (where perhaps [...]
→ Read moreHigh level cyber security
27. If we are to be successful in meeting the complex and inter-dependent challenges of Cyber Security, it will be vital to work with all sectors in the UK, as well as international partners. E-crimes relating to illegal access, illegal interception, data interference, botnets and other issues often require today cross-jurisdictional cooperation.
28. The UK’s National [...]
Personal digital and data security
37. Consumers must be able to communicate, trade, order services and work online with confidence. The networks and services they use must be available and reliable. Their private data (e.g. bank details) must be secure from misuse or fraud. Consumers must have confidence and be able to check that people they are trading with or [...]
→ Read moreSecuring home networks
41. As home networks and technologies becomes more complex it might be thought that the challenges consumers face become even greater. However, this needs to be balanced against the reality that not only are consumers are becoming more able and used to technical products, but also technical products are becoming more user friendly in their [...]
→ Read moreOnline consumer protection
44. Finally, the Government also recognises that existing mechanisms for consumer protection in the online world are complex and overlapping, with trading standards, the police, Ofcom and OFT all having a role. Good enforcement of consumer rights requires sufficient capacity to deal with the complex issues, effective joining up between agencies and the right interface [...]
→ Read moreData security and assurance
52. The issue of privacy and security of data online is a serious and growing one. A small number of high-profile cases have demonstrated the strong feelings that data privacy can provoke, and the complex relationship we have to the handling of different types of personal data and different types of consent.
53. It is an [...]
Online content safeguards
60. For the reasons set out above and in the context of the new global digital world we have described throughout this Report, the Government to date has supported industry’s desire to adopt a self regulatory approach in relation to online content safeguards. The Government acknowledges that industry has taken some important steps forward and [...]
→ Read moreCriminal material on the internet
64. The Internet Watch Foundation, based in Cambridge and with just 15 employees, is tasked with minimising the availability of criminal content – specifically, child sexual abuse content hosted anywhere in the world and criminally obscene and incitement to racial hatred content hosted in the UK. It works with law enforcement agencies worldwide and operates [...]
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