In a speech at a conference on Cyberspace held in Budapest, Hungary, the European Union’s (EU) High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton said, “We need to protect Cyberspace from attacks and make sure it continues to function reliably. We need to intensify global efforts to fight cybercrime that is shaking the confidence of online services and is thereby damaging our economies.” Ms. Ashton went on to say that existing international laws should be applied in cyberspace: “If conflicts extend to cyberspace, we can follow the Geneva Conventions. We should find ways to apply principles of those commonly accepted laws also in this new domain, rather than starting to draft new ones.”

Ms. Ashton also noted that the EU is increasing cyber security capacity globally, financing international cyber security capacity building efforts, and training law enforcement specialists.  A new European Union Cyber Security Strategy is also in preparation which “intends to harmonize the readiness of EU countries to deal with the security challenges in cyberspace." She concluded by noting that “Preserving the benefits of cyberspace is a shared responsibility for all of us – the private sector, civil society, governments, international organizations, and individuals.