12. International Electronic Communications Regulators Conference continued on its second day with the participation of Minister Ahmet Arslan. In the program where the closing ceremony was held, the negative effects of the increasing use of social media and the internet were put on the table.
This year's 12th International Electronic Communications Regulators Conference, organized under the theme “Technologies Shaping Social Life: Opportunities and Threats,” held its closing program hosted by the Information Technologies and Communication Authority. The second day of the program was attended by Minister of Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communications Ahmet Arslan, BTK President Dr. Ömer Fatih Sayan, representatives of regulatory institutions from different countries, and numerous sector stakeholders.
Expressing that they had the opportunity to benefit from the knowledge and experience of the participants on the first day of the conference, Sayan stated, “Technology has permeated almost every area of our daily lives. It is essential to analyze very well how technology, which has become a part of our social life, affects us. In other words, just as the technologies directing our social life are important, how and for what purpose these technologies are used is also of great importance. Over the past 10 years, with the increasing use of mobile internet, we can access information much faster.”
President Sayan also shared the following information about the events in the internet world over a short period of time: “We get information about places in another corner of the world that we have never been to, watch movies, listen to music, share pictures and videos, and thus stay in constant communication with our social circle. This rapid technological development inevitably brings new demands and needs along with it. We are aware of these needs and continue our work to not fall behind this speed.”
The Future Will Advance with Mobile Technologies
Stating that as a country aware that the future will be shaped by mobile technologies, technology is advancing towards 5G after 4.5G, Sayan said, “As an institution, we continue our work with this awareness. Established through the efforts of our Ministry of Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communications and our Institution, the 5GTR Forum, formed to position our country among technology-producing nations, is working to transition to 5G and Beyond technologies with the highest possible domestic and national capabilities. From core networks to physical networks, services and applications to standardization, all 5G-related topics are discussed in detail under the 5GTR Forum. We also attach great importance to the principle of domesticity and nationality in these studies.”
Emphasizing that transitioning to 5G mobile communication technology with the highest possible rates of domesticity and nationality is among their top priorities, Sayan stated, “In this direction, under the coordination of our Institution and with the support of our Ministry, projects we are conducting to establish the 5G and Beyond ecosystem are progressing rapidly. With these efforts, we aim to be in a position not chasing technology, but directing it, benefiting from the opportunities it offers while being prepared for the threats it brings.”
The Biggest Reflection of Technology is the Internet
Emphasizing that the biggest reflection of technology on our social life is the internet, Sayan said, “From 7 to 70, everyone accesses information via the internet at any moment through computers, tablets, or smartphones. While the internet environment, especially social media platforms, enables information and news to spread quickly to very wide audiences, it also provides a vast environment for disinformation and manipulation activities. So much so that we are faced with the fact that disinformation activities carried out over the internet even affect elections in countries. Indeed, it has become common knowledge that in elections held in various European countries, including Germany and France, and in the United States, personal data obtained irregularly from social media platforms was used, and voters were manipulated through disinformation activities.”
President Sayan also touched upon social media contents spread to provoke the June 24 Presidential and Parliamentary General Elections. Underscoring that social media is very effective in our country as it is all over the world, Sayan said, “Just like in many parts of the world, we observe that contents aimed at influencing elections and manipulating voter behavior are being spread, especially through social media in our country. I call on all internet actors, especially social media channels, to act responsibly and take necessary measures against manipulation and disinformation activities to ensure that our country enters the elections in a peaceful, democratic, and secure environment away from social polarization.”
Concluding his speech with the following call to social media companies and all internet actors on the subject, President Sayan said: “I invite you to make utmost efforts to ensure citizens access accurate information, develop mechanisms that allow citizens to report fake news and disinformation content more easily, take necessary measures in a timely manner against initiatives aimed at manipulating elections and voter behavior through your platforms, and be transparent about the activities you carry out in our country. I want to share with the public here that if no action is taken by the relevant parties regarding activities aimed at manipulating the June 24 elections, the Information Technologies and Communication Authority will do what is necessary.”
Minister Arslan: National-Scale Cybersecurity is of Vital Importance
Minister of Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communications Ahmet Arslan, who spoke at the opening, touched upon the changes the internet has brought to our lives in recent years. Expressing that habits, addictions, and necessities have changed in connection with the internet over the last 10-15 years, Arslan said, “In recent years, emphasis has been placed on the effective use of broadband access, mobile communications, and the internet in the development of rural areas and the transformation of cities into digital cities. Internet usage and the technologies it brings are spreading rapidly, and already more than 4 billion people in the world use the internet. At the end of 2007, this figure was 1 billion 114 million. 68% of the world's population, or 5.13 billion people, are mobile users. The number of social media users, measured in hundreds of thousands 10 years ago, now reaches 42% of the world's population, or 3.19 billion.”
Emphasizing that if the information infrastructure is damaged, it can only be tolerated through information technology, Arslan said, “Therefore, ensuring cybersecurity on an individual, institutional, national, and international scale is of vital importance. For this, it is necessary to be knowledgeable, equipped, and aware. Therefore, cybersecurity is one of the areas we work on the most. Turkey is one of the countries most targeted by cyberattacks in the world. According to the Fortinet Threat Landscape Report, 45% of computers in Turkey are subject to cyberattacks. Thank God, thanks to the importance our government attaches to cybersecurity, we emerge from these attacks with a clean record. As you know, since the time of our Prime Minister's Ministry, important regulations and investments have been made in cybersecurity along with infrastructure investments. In fact, in 2012, the Cybersecurity Board was established by the Council of Ministers decision to ensure comprehensive cybersecurity. Additionally, the National Cyber Incident Response Organization was established, Cyber Incident Response Centers were set up, and Cybersecurity Strategy and Action Plans were created.”
On the last day of the program, panelists also answered the questions in the sessions. The session titled “Personal Data Security and Cybersecurity from the Operators' Perspective,” moderated by BTK Board Member Celalettin Dinçer, was attended by Türk Telekom CEO Paul DOANY, Turkcell CEO Kaan TERZİOĞLU, Vodafone Turkey CEO Colman DEEGAN, and TÜRKSAT General Manager Cenk ŞEN.
The session titled “Internet of Things, Cloud Systems, M2M, Artificial Intelligence, Drones and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Industry 4.0,” moderated by BTK Board Member Figen Kılıç, was attended by Huawei Vice President Responsible for Product Line Zhao ZENGZHU, Vestel Group of Companies Executive Board President Enis Turan Erdoğan, and Google Technical Director Dr. Evren Eryürek.