Regulatory Diplomacy
The term ‘regulatory diplomacy’ has gained increasing attention over the past ten years, as in the UK’s Integrated Review (2021). “Regulatory diplomacy’ is a potential policy tool needed to address national security threats posed by regulatory fragmentation. This approach calls for new forms of cooperation (community wide support from government, academia and industry) and coordination (looking to identify roles that the OECD or others could play) to tackle regulatory challenges such as cybersecurity. Cybersecurity is becoming increasingly intertwined with national security and regulatory policy.
Companies deal with regulation all the time; national security officials deal with it more episodically. Improving international coordination (and where possible, alignment) on cybersecurity would have the benefit of improving defences, reducing risk, and better protecting critical national and international infrastructure (not least across financial services, national security, transport and healthcare).
Cybersecurity consistently appears in the top five strategic issues in organizational and government risk registers. Along with, and influenced by, geopolitics – cybersecurity is increasingly demanding attention, expertise, investment and decisions due to the growing volume of cybersecurity incidents (many of which rely on attack vectors that have been seen before). The move of advanced economies to a ‘default digital’ economy, in which the public sector, private sector and civil society all depend on data and digital services has massively expanded the attack surface for cyber-attackers. These include breaches, leaks, ransomware attacks, digital extortion cases, and state-sponsored hacking campaigns.
LSE-Wilton Park Meeting
Dialogue on International Cybersecurity Regulation, Wilton Park (September 2024)
In September 2024, LSE partnered with Wilton Park, the FCDO Executive Agency, to host an international dialogue on international cybersecurity regulation at Wilton Park in Sussex (with support of Microsoft and the Charter of Trust). The two-day group dialogue gathered G7 officials, including White House officials, regulators, the tech industry and a select group of experts.
Related Events
Professor Alexander Evans participated in a dialogue on "Harmonization of Cyber Regulations" organised by SIPA at Columbia University (watch livestream).
Learn more.
Professor Alexander Evans participated in a dialogue on the "Harmonization of International Cybersecurity Regulation" organised by the Centre for European Policy Studies (watch livestream).
Learn more.
Professor Alexander Evans discussed the question “Security Sovereignty by Regulation?” at the event, organised by the Security Network Munich.
Learn more.
Research interviews are underway with senior officials and experts from Europe, the United States, Canada, Japan and the United Kingdom.
Next Steps
We are preparing a major report for Spring 2025. We plan to provide both a deeper understanding of ‘regulatory diplomacy’ and cybersecurity and also an action-oriented menu of possible steps that countries could take to boost growth, contain the (ever growing) costs of cybersecurity – and enhance national and international security.
Meet the Team
Professor Alexander Evans OBE FRHistS
Director
Email: a.i.evans@lse.ac.uk
Alexander Evans is the Associate Dean for Strategic Development at the LSE School of Public Policy. A Professor in Practice in Public Policy, he directs the LSE's Professional Skills Accelerator and the MPA in Data Science for Public Policy. He teaches graduate courses on international diplomacy and technology, data science and policymaking. He is also Director of the LSE IDEAS Ratiu Forum.
Nicholas Filipek
Project Coordinator
Email: n.filipek@lse.ac.uk
Nicholas is a Master of Public Administration (MPA) student at the LSE School of Public Policy, specialising in Economic Policy. He has policy experience in Brussels through his work at the European Parliament and in public affairs consultancy.