At each edition of the International Cybersecurity Forum (FIC), workshop PhilosoFIC offers a time for reflection on a topical cyber issue.
In the form of a round table, the PhilosoFIC covers topics as varied as «The social acceptability of new technologies» (2021), «Virtuality: tomorrow's reality» (2022), and so on.
The 2023 event, which took place on Friday 7 April in the Marie Curie amphitheatre, provided an opportunity to look at «The future of the European Union".« the truth put to the test by information manipulation ».
Led by General (2S) Marc Watin-Augouard, founder of the FIC, the discussions brought together Cécile Doutriaux, a lawyer and founder of Juris Défense Avocats, Marc-Antoine Brillant, Deputy Director of Vigilance and protection service against foreign digital interference (VIGINUM), General (2S) Olivier Kempf, a specialist in geopolitics and strategy, and Jean Peeters, Chair, to conclude.
The issue of manipulation of information has always been topical. The Freedom of the Press Act of 29 July 1881 contains a chapter IV entitled «Crimes and offences committed through the press or any other means of publication». Previously, Article 4 of the Press Act of 27 July 1849 stipulated that «The publication or reproduction, in bad faith, of false news, fabricated or falsified documents or documents falsely attributed to third parties, when such news or documents are likely to disturb the public peace, will be punishable by imprisonment of between one month and one year and a fine of between fifty and one thousand francs».
As the Oliver Kempf, Cyberspace has a physical layer, a logical layer and a semantic layer. It is this last layer that we are dealing with when we talk about information. From this point of view, despite an initial libertarian vision of’internet and the fantastic meeting places that are the social networks, the fact is that they have also become vectors of power struggles, influence and above all the peddling of false information to harm individuals, organisations and states.
So, it was following the discovery of a russian interference in the 2017 presidential election campaign VIGINUM was created in France (decree no. 2021-922 of 13 July 2021). Marc-Antoine Brillant. This event, which targeted candidate Emmanuel Marcon in particular, acted as a catalyst for the State, in its regalian missions, to take measures to guarantee its sovereignty in the digital domain.
Cécile Doutriaux points out that the law punishes manipulation. Law 2018-1202 of 22 December 2018 on combating the manipulation of information thus strengthens the arsenal of sanctions. It also introduces a «duty of cooperation on the part of online platform operators in combating the dissemination of false information» (Articles 11 to 15). If the matter is referred to it, «the interim relief judge shall give a ruling within forty-eight hours of the referral». This may seem like a long time on the scale of the Internet, but it's a very quick turnaround for the courts.
By way of summary, Jean Peeters notes that the subject of the manipulation of information is first and foremost a problem for democracies, where debate is free. The globalisation of information via digital technology, far from creating sharing and a better understanding of our world, has led to a communitarianism of groups and ideas and a information fragmentation, This is all the more serious when the false information is propagated by the press and elected representatives of democratic states. This is all the more serious when false information is propagated by the press and elected representatives of democratic states.
In conclusion’sovereign cyber security requires informed and protected citizens.
