Contract negotiations are increasingly taking place online. The pandemic has shifted large parts of everyday working life into the digital space and thus acts as a catalyst for government and corporate digitization efforts. But the further digitalization advances, the more complex the related issues and challenges for politics and business become. Digital sovereignty is becoming an essential prerequisite for being able to keep pace with the global competition.
They Are Securely Protected By Digital Sovereignty
When confidential negotiations take place online and sensitive information is transmitted electronically, it is evident that special protective measures are required. However, individual technology users and companies who want to develop innovative digital business models and corresponding customer relationships are also dependent on being able to move safely in digital space and to be able to act in a self-determined manner.
Digital sovereignty is the same as that – indispensable for states and a thriving, healthy company. But how can this be strengthened or regained? A robust and secure infrastructure, the mastery of critical competencies and technologies as well as innovation-open framework conditions in the implementation.
Digital Infrastructure – A Critical Success Factor For The Development Of The Digital Market
The provision of an independent, robust and secure digital infrastructure in the form of broadband and cellular networks is the foundation on which the digital market can develop, and machines can communicate with each other in real-time. The core of the future digital economy is 5G mobile technology, which the federal government wants to accelerate.
Even with the investment and procurement, however, the question of the trustworthiness of 5G equipment suppliers arises – an essential requirement for the security of the emerging infrastructure and the digital sovereignty of their users.
The assessment is based on security considerations, in which technical and non-technical risks flow equally. This could mean a paradigm shift: Until now, the proven technical security was the decisive criterion in selecting suppliers in authorities and companies, a politically motivated argument comes into focus for the first time with the manufacturer’s trustworthiness.
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Innovative And Crisis-Proof Thanks To Differentiated Solutions
That infrastructure can withstand stress and crises, i.e. is resilient, and also requires differentiated solutions. These support the networking of different companies and industries – while guaranteeing the digital sovereignty of the individual players. Intelligent networks, for example, promote the sustainable and targeted development of transport, energy supply, health and education and administration: decentralized control and guidance functions can be efficiently coordinated with the aid of intelligent networks.
Concerning the digital ability to act and innovate in companies, cloud services play an outstanding role. Especially when companies have to cope with a growing or strongly fluctuating number of end-users or products, services “straight from the socket” score with flexibility, scalability and cost-efficiency. Provided the cloud provider meets the security and compliance requirements. Since only the services used are calculated, and there is no need for high initial investments, test infrastructures, for example, can be adapted quickly and with calculable risk with the help of cloud services.
Highly Secure And Open At The Same Time: The Balancing Act Of Digital Competition
However, for such solutions to be accepted by a broad group of users, they must be trustworthy and fail-safe – again based on the underlying infrastructure. Only if this is effectively hardened can data loss or manipulation along the usage chain be prevented. At the same time, information and communication infrastructures must be secured from within – keyword: “Security by Design”. When selecting hardware and software suppliers, it is essential to eliminate security risks as far as possible – regardless of whether in critical infrastructure, such as supplying large parts of the population or in a comparatively manageable company network.
At the same time, with all security in digital trading, interoperability with other systems, networked components and connected areas is a central prerequisite for digital sovereignty. Open, manufacturer-independent standards are an essential tool that ensures access to digital ecosystems and their platforms for all stakeholders and promotes interaction in innovative solutions, services and business models.
Without Relevant Skills, There Is No Digital Sovereignty
Absolute digital sovereignty, which addresses IT security and data protection and innovation-open competition, requires one thing above all: know-how. States, organizations, companies – only those who have mastered the key technologies and promote the following five key competencies can act confidently in the digital world. The competencies required to relate to:
Software And Hardware Skills
For the digital and real-world to merge and tailor-made human-machine interfaces to emerge, comprehensive analytical and conceptual solution skills are required that go far beyond pure programming skills. This applies to mathematical and scientific knowledge as well as sensor technology or digital media. The hardware links the digital world with its physical counterpart: sensors, microcontrollers, memory and crypto scripts are virtually available. With the design and manufacture of customer-specific electronics, it will be possible to work out unique selling points.
Deep Bright And Extensive Data Knowledge
They are required to create suitable functions and associations and to design innovative data value chains. This includes the ability to move confidently within the legal framework and ensure robust data protection because big data solutions need users’ trust to meet their goals in the long term.
Cloud Services And Platforms
For cloud services to be used by users and generate real added value, providers are required to use their skills and actions to remove uncertainties regarding security risks. This also applies to platforms that are becoming increasingly important in digital markets. Those who understand the interests and needs of their users and translate them into suitable business models have the opportunity to realize significant competitive advantages.
Mobile Technologies
The use of mobile devices and wireless transmission technologies has become an indispensable part of everyday life. Not only are they already the basis of many successful, innovative business models, due to the pandemic, simple (home) office life can no longer be imagined without them. It is therefore essential to stay on the ball – also when it comes to safety. Because hardly any area has shorter innovation cycles and barely any size is more focused on cybercriminals.
Education For Digitization Down To The User Level
Even if all security factors have been considered when setting up a digital infrastructure – every system can only be as good as its user. Digital education is the prerequisite for people to keep pace with advancing digitization, use solutions correctly and develop new ideas for concepts so that digital processes can generate even more benefits.
It is becoming clear that the COVID-19 pandemic has a significant impact on our everyday work and the acceleration of digitization. To secure the competitiveness of companies in the future, digital sovereignty is an essential prerequisite.
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