Dr Neha Mishra presented her postdoctoral research on the interface of cybersecurity and international economic law at the online Geneva Trade Week. The session she participated in was titled ‘Competition and Innovation in the Digital Age: Pro Innovation Domestic and International Governance for Digitally Enabled Services’, and was sponsored by the Institute for International Trade at the University of Adelaide, and Trade and Investment in Services Associates. Her co-panellists were Jane Drake-Brockman (moderator), Hildegunn Nordas, Pascal Kerneis and Bryan Mercurio.

Her presentation focussed on two points:
(i) Trade and cybersecurity can share a symbiotic relationship, but the economic costs to digital trade is very high when countries impose restrictive unilateral cybersecurity laws, regulations and policies. Such measures are also dangerous for global cybersecurity governance.
(ii) International trade agreements have an impact on both the domestic and global cybersecurity regulatory framework. International trade agreements can check protectionism by ‘disguised cybersecurity measures’ and thereby create more open, competitive conditions for global digital trade. International trade agreements can play a facilitative role based on the symbiotic relationship of trade and cybersecurity.

Dr Mishra highlighted that trade institutions can facilitate international regulatory cooperation and create a more robust environment for digital trade, by encouraging interoperability of data regulations and standards, and transparent, open, representative, globally competitive and market-driven cybersecurity standards and best practices.