Securing Access to the Internet and Protecting Core Internet Resources in Contexts of Conflict and Crises
During the 2025 IGF cycle, this Best Practice Forum (BPF) will examine the importance of securing Internet access and protecting core Internet resources in contexts of conflict and crisis situations. The work will be conducted through open and inclusive multistakeholder consultations, including regular meetings and other engagement opportunities.
The thematic main session on 'Protecting Internet Infrastructure and general access during times of crisis and conflict' at the IGF2024 in Riyadh pointed unambiguously to the need for work to be done to clarify the roles and responsibilities of the multistakeholder internet community - and the institutions that are part of it - with regard to securing and protecting core Internet resources and access to the Internet for civilians in contexts of conflicts and crises.
The BPF session at the IGF 2025 in Norway (23-27 June) will serve as a central milestone in this year's work. The BPF output for 2025 will be published by 1 November.
Scope of work
The BPF will analyse the overarching topic and evaluate key issues, challenges, and needs from the perspectives of different relevant actors and stakeholder groups. It will assess what work has been done, including through a literature review and identify good practices and gaps, and propose a forward-looking agenda for securing access to the Internet and protecting core Internet resources in contexts of conflict and crisis. The BPF will adopt a holistic approach: preparing for crisis, prevention and protection under legal frameworks, resilience, mitigating impacts, and rebuilding and recovery. The updated BPF proposal outlines the scope and work plan in greater detail.
Planned approach for 2025
Gather community and stakeholder input to:
- Formulate a problem statement
- Identify the main challenges
- Identify norms, agreements and processes that are applicable, assess they are useful and adhered to, and identify gaps
- Identify existing operational best practices
Activities
BPF Kick off call, 6 MAY 2025, 10am UTC - zoom registration link
Stay informed & participate
- To stay informed and actively participate, we encourage you to subscribe to the BPF’s dedicated mailing list.
- The BPF welcomes community volunteers to help with the collection of information, analysis and drafting. Contact [email protected] if interested in joining the work
BPF Coordinating team
- Ms Valeria Betancourt - MAG BPF co-facilitator
- Ms Anriette Esterhuysen - BPF co-facilitator
- Mr Wim Degezelle - BPF consultant, IGF Secretariat
Documents and resources
- Proposal for a BPF on Securing Access to the Internet and Protect Core Internet Resources in Contexts of Conflict and Crises (updated 14 April)
- IGF2024 Thematic Main Session 'Protecting Internet infrastructure and general access during times of crisis and conflict' (17 December 2024) - Summary report / Recording
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Previous work of the IGF BPF Cybersecurity focussed on cyber norms agreements
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