INA’s proposal for the establishment of a Regional eSecurity Network for SEE, as it was presented by its president, Mr. Vassili N. Takas, was welcomed during the South Eastern Europe Ministerial Conference on Information Society Development, which took place in Sarajevo, Bosnia – Herzegovina, on 28-30 October.

The proposal is part of INA’s initiatives to promote electronic security in Greece and the wider region of South-eastern Europe (SEE). According to INA’s proposal, the Network will operate in a decentralised mode through national centres in all countries of the region, which will be supported by INA Academy Nodes in SE Europe, while the coordination centre will be located in Thessaloniki, operating under INA Academy’s management. INA’s intention in the field had already been announced at the 3rd Regional Electronic Security Forum: Telecommunications Networks and Systems Security, organized by the Institute in Thessaloniki, 11 - 12 October 2007.

The delegates of the countries attending the South Eastern Europe Ministerial Conference endorsed INA’s proposal, and relative preparatory work has been initiated by the INA Academy and regional institutions have been contacted for the rapid establishment of the core of this Network. The next step, under the frame of the eSEEurope Plus regional task force of the Stability Pact, in which INA participates since its foundation in 2002, is the consultation of the eSecurity action plan. Private sector financing has already been ensured, while additional funding will be sought after. The Network will cover the following sectors of action:

Co-ordination for the establishment of national centres against electronic threats (CERTs - Computer Emergency Response Teams) in all countries of South-eastern Europe, but also promotion of the CERT teams’ by other institutions. In this sector of action the following activities will be included:

1.	Co-ordination of activities in regional level
2.	Systematic reporting of electronic threats in regional level
3.	Promotion of the most optimal practices and exchange of the know-how
4.	Interconnection to similar international initiatives
5.	Training and advisory support

Promotion of public awareness raising on issues related to the electronic transactions security, the safe internet use, the best practices for enterprises and consumers on issues of electronic trade, the eradication of illegal content, as well as the protection of intellectual property rights in the digital world. INA is already a member of the national Action Group for Digital Security, collaborating with the DART – ‘Digital Awareness and Response to Threats’ task force, under the Special Secretariat of Digital Planning of the Greek Ministry of Finance and Economy. INA’s objective is the collaboration with the DART task force so that best practices can be transferred to the countries of Southeastern Europe.

Promotion of regional policies concerning the electronic identification of persons and legal entities through the interoperability of certification systems and the verification of electronic transactions. INA participates in the Global Trust Center (GTC) initiative that promotes an innovative policy for user centric digital identity management and certification traceability of electronic transactions. The GTC’s offices are located in Malmo, Sweden and the cooperation with INA aims at the inclusion of the south-eastern Europe countries in the international schema. The Global Trust Center counts today more than 25 members that represent countries from Western Europe, Asia, the United States and Australia

The new agenda of the Stability Pact eSEE initiative (electronic South East Europe), which was signed during the Regional Ministerial Conference/ Meeting of the Ministers of Telecommunications of Southeastern Europe, recognizes the importance of electronic security and the engagement in joint activities like INA proposal for the constitution of the Regional Network for the Defence against Electronic Threats in SE Europe. The conference was organised by the Bosnian Ministry of Communications and Transport in collaboration with the United Nations Development Program, the Stability Pact for Southeastern Europe in collaboration with the European Commission and the attendance of official representatives from Albania, Bosnia, Croatia, Montenegro, Moldavia, FYROM, Romania, Serbia and the United Nations Mission in the Kosovo. The conference’s main objectives were the following:

1	The signature of a new regional action plan for the development of Information Society in SEEurope for the period 2007 - 2012 (eSEE Agenda Plus) in order to replace the eSEE Agenda.
2	The examination of the eSEE Agenda results and the presentation of the best practices deriving from the region
3	The promotion of electronic governance
4	The undertaking of new collaboration initiatives with the private sector for the complete implementation of new regional plan (eSEE Agenda Plus).