Chapter 11: How do we respond to tensions arising from some security impacts of Globalisation?

Transnational Terrorism

When terrorists operate beyond one country's borders and impacts of their terrorist activities are felt in more than one country. Terrorism has become global in nature, with the number of people dying from terrorist acts increasing over the years: Since 2000, there has been a 5x increase in the number of deaths from 3000 in 2000 to 17000 in 2013. The economies of the countries, especially LDCs, have been affected by terrorist acts on their soils, with 1.4% decrease in growth with every additional terrorist attack per million. It is a great challenge as: -threats can come from both within and beyond a country's borders -terrorists generally target civilians and not armed troops to create an atmosphere of fear. -almost impossible to identify terrorists till they have carried out their acts -they do not follow the rules of conventional warfare set up in the International Humanitarian Law.

Preventive Measures

-help prevent terrorists attacks from occurring and causing social and economic disruptions. They act as a form of deterrence. Border Controls -help prevent movements of known or suspected terrorists as well as materials that can produce explosives. Many countries have introduced biometric passports which contain biological data such as fingerprints and facial features on a microchip. This makes it difficult for terrorists to enter countries using forged passports. E.g Immigrations and Checkpoints authority is responsible for border control in Singapore. They use radiographic image analysis of cargoes and vehicles entering Singapore which reveals dangerous items hidden. The Radiographic Scanner Portal is used to scan air shipments at Changi Airfreight Centre where all goods entering and leaving Singapore by air is scanned there. E.g Some countries such as USA use No-Fly lists since 9/11, which restricts the movements of suspected terrorists from entering the country. Even citizens who are know or suspected to be terrorists are banned from boarding the plane heading for USA. E.g. Canada Passenger Protect Programme, 2007 However, it is seen to violate the individual's right to freedom of movement, which has been guaranteed under the universal declaration of Human Rights. International Collaboration -transnational nature of modern-day terrorism means that preventive measures are effective only if they work together and no individual country can fight alone. E.g. following 9/11, UN passed a resolution in 2001 which called for global cooperation tog fight terrorism. Countries are to share intelligence on terrorist groups and individuals and governments are to work closely together. The UN also established the Counter Terrorism Committee to help member countries to help fight terrorism within own country as well as work together with other countries. E.g. Interpol Fusion Task Force: facilitate cooperation and collaboration among countries. Shares information on terrorists and help enhance the abilities of member countries. Also works closely with other IOs such as UN-based CTC to monitor terrorist groups, have up to date information. E.g. Singapore as a member of the US-led Container Security Initiative which is formed to ensure maritime security. Cargoes are transported through containers screen thoroughly for illegal materials used for explosives. Containers bound for USA are to be screened at port of origin. E.g. ASEAN Counter Terrorism Workshop -exchange information and practices to prevent terrorist activities. Mas Selamat Kestari was the leader of Singapore Jemaah Islamiyya. He evade arrest in 2001 when the ISD found out and fled to Indonesia.Indonesian police caught him and handed him over to Singapore in 2006. He escaped in 2008 and fled to Malaysia. in 2009 he was caught and sent back to Singapore, and is still in custody. The recapture was a result of cooperation and sharing of intelligence. Public: total defence-> 5 pillars show how everyone can play a part, remain vigilant to prevent terrorists acts in Singapore.

How can we manage cyber security challenges?

Advancements in technology has made it possible for cybercriminals to commit their illegal actions boldly. Cybercriminals can operate from any part of the world and they can also use their skills to remain anonymous, making it difficult to identify and locate them. Many governments are taking cybercrimes very seriously by taking measures to counter these threats. -E.g. Singapore takes serious view of cybercrimes and has introduced or modified laws to ensure cybercriminals are seriously dealt with. In 2013, the Prime Minister's Office and Istana websites were hacked. Even though the cybercriminals were caught, it caused substantial damage and wasted authorities time and resources in tracking them down. It also embarrassed the government and questioned the credibility of the government's ability to safeguard their websites. Singaporean companies and individuals have also been targets of cybercriminals. -E.g. Cyber Watch Centre was upgraded to track malicious cyber actions and to take appropriate measures quickly. It introduced the 5 year National Cyber security Masterplan in 2018 to enhance Singapore's cyber security. This included increasing the number of cyber security experts, educating businesses and individuals on the need to adopt cyber security measures and enhancing the cyber infrastructure security. -E.g Cyber Security Awareness and Outreach Programme to create greater awareness of cyber threats among companies and individuals: Crimewatch TV programme that provided reports and re-enactments of real-life crime. -E.g. Cyber security Agency in 2015: centralise our national cybersecurity. It protects critical cyber infrastructure such as those in the energy and banking sectors. It is managed by the Ministry of Communication and Information, and reports to the PMO. The National Cyber Security Masterplan that was previously under the IDA now comes under the CSA. -E.g. 2016: The government announced that by 2017, civil servants will not be able to access the Internet from their official governments issued computers linked to the government network where sensitive data is kept. This prevents hackers from planting malware on the Internet and gaining access to the GN through civil servant's computers, which are connected to both the open internet and the GN. Enhance collaboration with other countries to tackle cybercrimes by sharing information and expertise with one another to fight cybercrime together. -E.g. Asia-Pacific Computer emergency Response Team: fight cyberattacks through collaboration and strengthen the region's ability to combat cyber threats. Singapore is the founding member and member of the steering committee, playing a key role in enabling cooperation among ASEAN and other countries. Work with private companies. IDA works with reputable cyber companies to strengthen cyber security in the country and track down cybercriminals. These companies help train the cyber security personnel in enhancing their abilities to fight cybercrimes. Individuals still need to stay vigilant: >Install, update, maintain firewalls and anti-virus software in your computer. >Install anti-malware and anti-spyware software. >Create strong passwords and change them regularly. >Be careful with surfing habits and never open any suspicious looking emails, instant messages or pop-up messages. >Turn on your browser's privacy setting to prevent the browser from storing information about yourself when you surf the Internet.

Security Challenges

Countries have always faced political, economic and environmental challenges.These the more complicated in the globalised world due to the transnational nature of these challenges when a country's borders no longer guarantee protection.

Impacts of Cyber Security Challenges

Cybercriminals are people who break into another person's computer or computer network. They use malicious software to hack into the networks and illegally access the information there. Other cybercriminals target governments or business networks to gain secret information, and if they gain such access, would spell trouble for the entire country. -E.g. in 2013, the USA accused China's military of cyber-attacking its government network and stealing sensitive information on US political, economic and defence sectors. China responded by saying that the USA had been doing this to China for years. Hackitivists break into government networks to make secret government documents public as they feel that the governments should not have hidden the information from the public. -E.g. Julian Assange released US secret documents, including those of Us military operations on Wikileaks. He argued that the public had the right to know what the Us government was doing. The government disputed and said that the leaks compromised the security and placed serving soldier's lives at stake. Some of the leaked documents also had the potential of harming US diplomatic relations with other countries. Businesses are also targeted for trade secrets or money. Companies sometimes steal from other companies to stay competitive or do better than their rivals. Banks are particularly vulnerable as cybercriminals can steal vast amounts of money if they hack into an online banking network. Cybercrimials target individuals by using malware to steal information that the individuals place online through computers or smartphones and use the information against the individual in various ways.

Impacts of transnational terrorism

Globalisation has contributed to the rise of transnational terrorism, as reflected in the increased number of terrorist attacks worldwide in the recent years. Technological advances have made it easy for terrorists to co-ordinate their activities across a country's borders. Terrorist organisations use Internet to spread their violent beliefs to recruit new converts to support their violent causes. They also use the internet to raise funds, transfer funds, collect intelligence and distribute propaganda. E.g. Between 2003 and 2005, more than 4300 websites were serving terrorists groups and supporters. Many countries have experienced terrible terrorist attacks, which have resulted in the loss of many innocent lives. E.g. 9/11: Al-Qaeda hijacked 4 American commercial liners and crashed them into selected targets such as the World Trade Centre in NYC and the Pentagon in D.C. It resulted in the deaths of more than 3000 people of different nationalities including the 19 terrorists themselves. It was successful due to the ease at which the terrorists were able to gather information through the internet. Post-9/11, the US government removed all sensitive information, such as locations of military bases and chemical weapons facilities, from the Internet to prevent such information from falling into the hands of terrorists.

Responsive Measures

SPF and SCDF hold frequent contingency exercises to be prepared for any terrorist attacks. E.g. Annual Exercise Heartbeat: SPF and SCDF work together with the community and private organisations to train personnel on responsive measures. At a higher level, a number of government organisations come together to test their abilities to respond to terrorist attacks in Exercise Northstar, besides training members of these organisations, it also raises public awareness about the need to be vigilant. International Collaboration -Singapore collaborates with other countries to better prepare for terrorist-related national emergencies E.g. DSO-National Laboratories work with other countries such as USA, France and Sweden on chemical, biological, radiological and explosives related research and developmental efforts, amking Singapore more prepared for CBRE-related attacks. Singapore also shares CBRE expertise with other countries. At 2013 ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting, ASEAN+ Australia, China and USA came together to discuss strategies to counter such teror attacks. E.g. takes part in international missions to countries which face threats from terrorists: SAF sent around 500 personnel to Afghanistan between 2007 and 2013 as part of the International Security Assistance Force. Helped in humanitarian aid, medical, surgical, dental healthcare, construction and engineering. Helped train the Afghanistan National Services Forces to defend countries from threats

Protective Measures

Surveillance -enhanced in various places, such as power stations and places where people gather in large numbers, which are preferred by terrorists. E.g. SAF works together with other security agencies and plays a key role in protecting Singapore's borders and important installation areas. Jurong Island is a petrochemical hub. It is protected by the SAF, SPF and PCG to protect this crucial and vulnerable area. The RSN and PCG protect waters, RSAF and CAAS protect skies. When governments increase surveillance on citizens, it may intrude privacy and violate rights. E.g. USA full body scanners (2007): detect hidden dangerous items carried by individuals in their clothing and their bodies, which is a virtual body strip and violates privacy. The government had to place it with new scanners that do not violate privacy in 2013. Detention without Trial -detain suspected terrorists indefinitely without trail E.g. Singapore Internal Security Act allows government to detain anyone who is deemed a threat to the well-being of society. It used ISA to detain JI in 2001 and Bangladeshi workers in 2016. To ensure its proper use, there is an Advisory Board chaired by a Supreme Court Justice to review all detentions under the ISA. The President has veto powers, if the Board decides to release any ISA detainees, it cannot continue to detain person with the President's assent. He has the final say in ISA detentions. E.g. Patriots Act, USA. People can be deported from the USA with no recourse to challenge the decision. It has been criticised by HR groups, condemnations and opposition grew when it was revealed that they were tortured. The ISA and PA will always be contested and cause tensions between protecting the country and violating rights. Those that support them believe that it is necessary because it is too dangerous to allow suspects to be free, and very difficult to bring to court with no evidence. Authorities should use any means necessary including torture to uncover information from detainees, leading to more arrest or the prevention of terrorist attacks, saving innocent lives. Those that are against it cite the possibility of innocents being detained, tortured and interrogated and having no means to prove their innocence and be released from custody.

Cyber Security

Technological advancements have resulted in a rapid growth of online networks which store large amounts of confidential data. This makes it easy for people and convenient for them to access their own data anywhere in the world. It also means that stored confidential data can become vulnerable to cyber attacks. Governments', businesses' and individuals' private and confidential data are more vulnerable to cyber attacks, which can be laucnhed from any part of the world.