Park Calls for Digital Equality

President Park Geun-hye called for a global effort to close the digital divide at the start of the 2013 Seoul Conference on Cyberspace, Thursday.

“To close the still-prevalent digital divide, the international community should come up with more practical countermeasures against the widening gap,” Park said.

The two-day meeting under the theme “Global prosperity through an open and secure cyberspace” is being attended by 1,600 representatives from 87 countries and 18 global organizations.

“More than 4 billion people still cannot enjoy the benefits of the Internet. The digital divide is a significant task that should be tackled immediately,” she said. “I hope the Seoul conference will be able to contribute to the creation of open and secure cyberspace, and help the global village prosper through the sharing of experiences and visions.”

Park said the development of the Internet and cyberspace provides sources of innovation to all related sectors, spearheading economic growth and cultural enrichment across the world.

However, she pointed out that there are also many concerns on top of the digital divide, including cyber security and cybercrimes such as hacking and the spreading of malicious codes.

“Cyberspace is increasingly vulnerable to security risks such as the leakage of personal data, spam and the spread of malicious codes. We need to come up with global principles to prevent such things from...