Peter A Clarke

The Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation announced the beginning of the process to create a Common Thread Network to allow for the sharing of expertise of Commonwealth agencies on cybersecurity  and cyber governance.

The announcement provides:

BALACLAVA FORT, 16 October 2014 – Commonwealth privacy regulators met today in the margins of the 36th International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners held on 13 – 16 October 2014 in Balaclava Fort, Mauritius to agree the next steps in establishing the Common Thread Network (CTN), a Commonwealth network aimed at facilitating the sharing of experiences, knowledge and expertise amongst Commonwealth stakeholders and promoting cross-border cooperation, an area seen as critically important in view of the growth of the cyberspace, data, and Cloud services.

The Balaclava Fort conference was attended by data protection and privacy officials of the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, Singapore, Malta, Mauritius, State of Victoria (Australia) and Ghana under the joint chairmanship of the United Kingdom and Canada, with the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO) as observer.

Welcoming the delegates, UK Information Commissioner, Christopher Graham drew attention to the role of good privacy practices in assisting socio-economic development. “It cannot be a coincidence that a small nation such as Mauritius has both a growing ICT and process sub-contracting sector and a highly effective data protection authority. Enterprise and consumer trust go hand in hand”, said Mr Graham.

CTN was originally the brainchild of the Canadian Privacy Commissioner’s Office. Federal Privacy Commissioner Daniel Therrien said: “Our aim is to leverage the strengths available within the Commonwealth to support each other, in keeping with the spirit of the Commonwealth. We will continue as a grouping of willing and committed partners pursuing similar goals which ultimately leads to better socio-economic outcomes and social norms which treat data and privacy with the care and dignity it deserves.”

The network is being co-ordinated by the CTO. Lasantha De Alwis, CTO’s Director and Head of Operations said that “data protection and privacy fits perfectly within the Cybergovernance and cybersecurity agenda of the CTO which, as the Commonwealth organisation mandated in the field of ICTs, works to help Commonwealth countries leverage ICTs for socio-economic development.”

The Information Commissioner has also made an announcement in ICO helps establish new Commonwealth network which provides:

The ICO has been helping to establish a new network of Commonwealth privacy regulators to promote cross-border co-operation and build capacity for effective data protection.
 
The Common Thread Network, as it is to be known, will enable the sharing of experience, knowledge and expertise across Commonwealth nations, tackling critical issues such as the growth in use of the internet, international data transfers and the cloud.
 
Information Commissioner Christopher Graham said,

“An increasingly connected world needs connected solutions. The Common Thread Network will allow us to utilise each member’s strengths to tackle global problems. Co-operation has always been at the heart of the Commonwealth and the Common Thread Network is another great example of that.”

“It’s also important for UK consumers and citizens to make sure that contracted-out data processors in emerging markets stick to privacy rules,” he added.

The Common Thread Network was established at the International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners in Mauritius. A Common Thread meeting was attended by was attended by data protection and privacy officials of the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, Singapore, Malta, Mauritius, State of Victoria (Australia) and Ghana under the joint chairmanship of the United Kingdom and Canada, with the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO) as observers.