International partnership for strengthening cybersecurity defenses worldwide
The Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) has recently unveiled a set of Global Cybersecurity Principles, aiming to revolutionize cybersecurity governance worldwide. These principles, released in July 2025, advocate for a borderless, global approach to cybersecurity, acknowledging that cyber threats transcend national boundaries.
The principles offer a policy framework to guide governments and stakeholders in creating cohesive, interoperable cybersecurity strategies. By fostering global collaboration, they encourage shared standards, transparency, and trust between countries and industries. The ultimate goal is to modernize how cybersecurity is governed, shifting from isolated national efforts to a more unified, effective global ecosystem that can better address evolving cyber threats in an interconnected digital world.
The principles are structured into three general buckets: core governance themes, conditions for a resilient ecosystem, and technological agility and innovation. Core governance themes include adopting a risk-based approach, curtailing the fragmentation of the regulatory landscape, and leveraging international industry-led standards. Conditions for a resilient ecosystem encompass facilitating open and secure cross-border data flows, engaging all stakeholders early and often throughout the development process, and establishing sound baseline requirements. Technological agility and innovation include recommendations related to the security software development processes, leveraging AI and secure AI systems, trusted cloud, cryptography as a fundamental building block of sound cybersecurity policy, and more.
The ITI's Global Cybersecurity Principles seek to close the gap between rapid digital innovation and fragmented, sometimes outdated cybersecurity policy. One of the challenges in aligning operations with these principles is thinking about policymaking holistically and embracing a whole value chain risk assessment.
Leopold Wildenauer, the Director of Policy for Cybersecurity and Supply Chain at ITI, believes that the United States has led the world in embracing a partnership-based model in cybersecurity. However, it is not explicitly stated how the United States stacks up against the principles outlined by ITI. The current administration has focused on creating efficiencies in cybersecurity, including the overhaul of existing systems and the spearheading of regulatory efficiency through OMB efforts. One such initiative is the FedRAMP 20x Initiative.
The response to the report has been positive, but ongoing, with continued engagement with the administration and global governments expected. The ITI plans to use the content of the report to work with various governments to make the principles specific to their unique context and apply them effectively. It is important to note that the report is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area and is only a month old, so the feedback and discussions are still ongoing.
The ITI emphasizes the need for technological neutrality, as cybersecurity and cyber threats are evolving rapidly, and governments need to think about an equally responsive way to address them without being tied to a technological solution. The report is intended for a global audience, not just a U.S.-focused one, and the ITI hopes to work with global governments to address their unique cybersecurity issues.
In summary, ITI’s Global Cybersecurity Principles serve as a unifying standard to help governments and industry develop aligned, modern cybersecurity policies that treat cybersecurity as a collective, cross-border responsibility rather than fragmented, individual efforts.
- The ITI's Global Cybersecurity Principles suggest encouraging a federal workforce to implement these updated cybersecurity policies, as they advocates for a borderless, global approach to cybersecurity.
- In the creation of cybersecurity strategies, the principles propose that technology should be a key focus, emphasizing the importance of technological agility and innovation in the face of evolving cyber threats.
