Big tech --- Alan, let me add to this discussion. Big tech has a direct interest in global cybersecurity (thus beyond the security of their own services): cyber-insecurity decreases the trust of people in digitalisation, which is their core business model.

Take Microsoft for instance: it remains to be heavily attacked (ie vulnerability in its products exploited) in spite of their rather strong overall security (they have been investing a lot in their own improvements), since they are the dominant market players. Yet each major exploitation of their vulnerabilities brings in question trust in digital world: WannaCry and notPetya were very important examples of this, when critical Microsoft vulnerabilities were exploited. Since, they have become one of the main backers of various global cybersecurity initiatives: Digital Geneva Convention proposal, Paris Call, Cyber Peace Initiative... (we will discuss this more later in the course)

It is similar with Google and others - though not at the same level yet.

Governments, on the other hand, also have interest in exploiting the vulnerabilities besides being protected. Thus, even when cybersecurity get on the political agenda (increasingly so), it is met with different interests

Source author: Vladimir Radunovic vladar@diplomacy.edu