Swiss Cyber Security Days: The hybrid war in Europe has begun

As spring approaches, the Swiss cybersecurity industry gathers in Bern. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the Swiss Cyber Security Days (SCSD) once again took place in the federal capital.

This year's conference program was opened by Federal Councillor Guy Parmelin. "40 years ago, an event like the Swiss Cyber Security Days would never have taken place," he said in front of around 2,500 invited guests. "Back then, cybersecurity was not even an issue." 25 years ago, a conference like this might have been held on a smaller scale - but probably not with a Federal Councillor as a speaker. "Back then, it was more of a topic for insiders." But today, cybersecurity is on everyone's lips. "Unfortunately, I have to say," added the Federal Councillor.

The Federal Office for Cybersecurity (BACS) would receive a cyber incident report approximately every 8.5 minutes. And successful attacks cause enormous damage to the companies affected. "It is therefore right and important for a Federal Councillor to talk about this, especially as the person responsible for the economy and innovation," said Parmelin, the head of the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research.

Industry should work on transparency

On stage at Bernexpo, Parmelin reminded the audience that the Federal Council will introduce mandatory reporting of cyber incidents involving critical infrastructure in the first half of this year. "These reports will help to identify and combat potential threats at an early stage," he said. By working together, cyber security in Switzerland could be strengthened.

However, Federal Councillor Parmelin also admonished the industry. Transparency in cybersecurity is inadequate. "A key challenge for every management team is to assess risks correctly," he said. This is already a challenging task in general, but the lack of transparency makes it even more difficult. "The quality of offers varies greatly and it is difficult for businesses to assess whether a product or service delivers on its promise," he said.

Switzerland is on the right track in this area. "Nevertheless, I appeal to you," said Parmelin. "Try to create transparency so that companies and the population can better assess risks and protect themselves adequately."

Switzerland is also the target

In his speech, Federal Councillor Parmelin also addressed the war in Ukraine. A topic that was subsequently addressed by Corps Commander and Chief of the Armed Forces Thomas Süssli - with some worrying statements.

First, however, the army chief spoke about China. The country has a cyber force of more than 100,000 specialists. "The structure is the same as the US Cyber Command, which also has around 100,000 cyber specialists."

"And if we now say that we hardly see them in cyberspace, then there are three possible explanations for this. The first is that they might be so bad that they can't do anything. The second explanation is that we are not the target at all. And then there's a third explanation, which is the most likely: assume that they're already in your networks."

Incidents that have taken place here show that Switzerland can certainly be a target. In his speech, he described one such case - which also shows that cyber threats can also start in the real world.

He couldn't say too much. But an "employee who worked in the Federal Administration in the broadest sense" traveled to Bern by train every day and had a coffee and read the newspaper at the station in the same place. One morning a woman was already sitting there, they struck up a conversation and realized that they both liked dogs. Talking to her became part of his morning routine. "It sounds like the beginning of a romantic story, but it wasn't," said Süssli. The employee in question was the target of a social engineering attack. The attackers presumably wanted to penetrate the federal network through him.

A new world order

"The turnaround has happened and we have witnessed the transformation," Süssli then said about the current security policy situation. Many would associate the term "turning point" with the statement by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. After all, his speech after the outbreak of war is also known as the "Turning point speech" is labeled.

However, the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) had already published its report "three weeks before Russia attacked Ukraine in violation of international law". foreign policy report was published, said Süssli. And the word "turning point" is already in the second paragraph.

The world has now transitioned from an old, rule-based international order to a new world order with centers of power. And these power centers would determine the world by exercising power and power politics among themselves. "We must also place cyber in this context," said Süssli.

The FDFA report still used the term "turning point" to refer to China. "China began questioning the existing, rules-based order several years ago and spoke early on about the fact that the country wants a multipolar world order," said the corps commander. "China claims that this new order is fairer. Autocratic and democratic states would have the same rights in this new world. But the transition from today's world to the new world, the Chinese say, could be a bit bumpy. And who knows, maybe we're on that bumpy road right now."

China, like the climate and Russia, is just an underlying storm, said Süssli. Economically, the country is not that important. However, Russia considers itself a major or even superpower. "What kind of favor has Trump done Putin now because he has negotiated directly with him on an equal footing? That's exactly what Russia wants," said Süssli. The Russian armed forces are (still) strong on land, in the air, at sea and in space. "But where Russia is particularly strong is in cyberspace."

No defense in cognitive warfare

Among other things, Russia wants to keep "harmful democratic influences" away from its own country in order to keep its own population calm. One means of achieving this is to destabilize Europe. This is done through disinformation, influence and also sabotage in cyberspace.

In a subsequent Q&A, he was therefore also asked the direct question: Is Switzerland at war? "I think the hybrid war has started in Europe," Süssli replied, also referring to Statements by Christian Dussey, Director of the Federal Intelligence Service.

"We have the greatest sensitivity with our open, liberal, democratic society," answered Süssli when asked about the threats in this hybrid war. "Society's trust in the state, in state agencies and also in the media. This is what needs to be protected and the appropriate measures must be taken." Many cyber actions are also aimed precisely at undermining this trust.

This topic, cognitive warfare, was taken up again later by a panel. "We see many attempts to undermine people's trust in the government," said Jean-Marc Rickli, Head of Global & Emerging Risks at the Geneva Center for Security Policy.

According to Mauro Vignati, consultant for new digital war technologies at the ICRC, there is a lack of defense here. Although there are many technical protection systems, "we have no programs to teach people to think critically or to show them how to protect and defend their minds." Currently, people are often not even able to recognize that such attacks are taking place. A business case is still missing. As soon as this exists, said Vignati, an industry will develop around it.

However, Rickli took a more critical view. Should technology become even more invasive, such as brain-computer interfaces directly in the brain, critical thinking would no longer be possible. "We haven't reached that point yet," he said, "but we are increasingly moving in that direction." (Coen Kaat/jor/swi)

This article first appeared in Netzwoche.