Education as a Long-Term Strategy for Cyber Security

Most strategies and policies for cyber security are in essence reactive since they devise (counter) measures for known problems or quantitative forecasts of known problems. A long term strategy should predict new problems qualitatively. The problem with cyber security stems from the fact that cyberspace will invade physical space almost completely, including human bodies. The speed of changes in the way people live and work; as well as the emergence of new, related security problems, is accelerating while legislative and technical counter measures merely react on detected problems. Moreover, that critical mass of humans which should recognize risks, dangers and attacks in cyberspace does not, and does not have required knowledge and skills. In addition the general population is at risk for cyber security incidents due to his/her ignorance or to the mere statistical probability that he/she will make a mistake given the huge number of human-machine interactions in a unit of time and human nature being unsuitable for multiple, simultaneous routine tasks. While short term strategies have to rely on development and deployment of technical means for supervision and protection of systems, for (re) defining the legal framework and creating and nurturing the (new) body of cyber law enforcement, a long term strategy is also needed. It has to focus on accelerated and prompt education and increased awareness in all age groups, literally from kindergarten to retirement. This education has to be mandatory in all school systems and within the working environment in the framework of occupational safety. It has to be a major component of everyone's continuous, lifelong education. In order to support this strategy, national centers for increased awareness and broad education should be established, strongly linked with academia both because of academia's deep insight in cyber security development and its involvement in development of educational methods and tools. The long term strategy has to evolve a new culture of self preservation as well as community (self) care and preservation providing visible and omnipresent emergency response focal points. This long term strategy needs to be devised urgently and put in operation in parallel with short term strategies.