Finnish Internet Forum 2024 Offered Its Best to the Audience
<p>The Finnish Internet Forum was held on April 3, 2024, for the 15th time. The setting in the Little Parliament was excellent, as the Parliament’s facilities were perfectly suited for a seminar focusing on "Artificial Intelligence and the Resilience of Digital Everyday Life Enabled by the Internet." Nearly 100 experts from the field attended, and 199 people followed the webcast. </p>
<p>The event was opened by Aino-Kaisa Pekonen, Chair of the Committee for the Future. The Committee for the Future has been involved in FIF events from the start, so it was natural for the day to begin with the chair and end with the vice-chair, Member of Parliament Timo Harakka. The day’s moderators were Tommi Karttaavi, Digital Director from the Eastern Uusimaa Wellbeing Services County, and Stefan Lee, Deputy Director of Cybersecurity from the State Cybersecurity Office. The day’s organizing force was Janne Hirvonen, a Foreign Affairs Secretary from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. </p>
<p>Kirsi Karlamaa, Technology and Strategy Director at Traficom, highlighted the perspective of resilience. She noted that denial-of-service attacks have increased, putting security to the test. She emphasized the importance of increasing collaboration with various stakeholders and ensuring skills. Artificial intelligence presents opportunities and threats, and in her view, Finland must be active, innovative, and transparent in its actions. </p>
<p><b>Panel 1: Is the EU’s AI Regulation Already Outdated Upon Completion? </b><br></p>
<p>The panelists had mixed opinions. The majority felt that the AI Act is "passé." Member of Parliament Aura Salla stated: "The metaverse business has been conducted for years in places like Silicon Valley. Realism has been forgotten, and there is a massive amount of regulation that overlaps and intersects." She identified privacy protection and the ability to manage one’s own data as critical future targets requiring special attention. </p>
<p>Anna-Maija Ohlsson, Development Manager at Save the Children Finland, focused on children when discussing insecurity. "The internet is full of harmful effects, violence, and bullying. Dependence on devices and content is increasing. Children should be included in decision-making," Ohlsson noted. As solutions to negative phenomena, she proposed more effective content monitoring, recognizing harmful situations, and involving all stakeholders in these "efforts." </p>
<p>Executive Director Tapani Tarvainen from Effi ry highlighted the inequality in police operations within the EU. "In some EU countries, trust in the police is at a different level than in Finland, for example," said Tarvainen. He also believed that the AI regulation was outdated from its inception, stating: "The AI regulation was written concerning past technologies, and systems and models are continuously evolving." </p>
<p>Professor Petri Myllymäki from the University of Helsinki mentioned the Lumi supercomputer, recognized worldwide for its existence and advancement, and something we can be proud of. We have trust, expertise, capacity, and the potential to lead the field by any measure. Regarding the title topic, he pondered how the law would be interpreted in the future. </p>
<p>In the joint discussion, the responsibility for continuous reporting and management was seen as a problem with the AI Act. The regulation was thought to benefit large corporations the most, as they have the most resources to influence decisions and interpretations. Additionally, there was concern about whether the civil servants’ level of expertise is sufficient. </p>
<p>Ways to increase citizens’ understanding of the challenges and opportunities of AI included emphasizing the role of mainstream media as a producer and distributor of information and as a guide. Many families feel that AI does not affect them or their children at all. This perception puts families in a very unequal position because we do not want AI or information from the internet to be the ones raising our children. Responsibility belongs to everyone, and we must collectively consider how to share information, guide, and help exclude dangerous content from the internet. Increasing media literacy, developing critical thinking, and enhancing teachers’ expertise in working with and teaching AI are especially important. </p>
<p>Joonas Mikkilä, a leading expert at Technology Industries of Finland, stated in his commentary that the challenge with AI regulation is its vast scope. Additionally, he noted that although the data protection directive has been in place as a background, there are no legal precedents for the regulation yet. He believes it is good that there is a risk classification for AI systems and that reflecting this on the company’s own business would be sensible. He mentioned that Finland’s role in AI-related matters is significant, which is why, for example, Technology Industries of Finland is investing ten million euros to accelerate the utilization of AI in Finland. The aim is to increase AI adoption and development in Finnish technology companies, strengthen applied research, and attract AI talent to Finland. The 100th Anniversary Foundation of Technology Industries will donate 3.2 million euros to establish a new AI research center at Aalto University. </p>
<p>Participating remotely in the event, MEP Miapetra Kumpula-Natri reported that the AI Act passed with a clear majority vote when the matter was voted on. She emphasized that safety is the most important aspect, so everyone is needed to discuss the future, which is our common concern. She also mentioned the AI office established within the European Commission, which supports the development and use of trustworthy AI and protects against AI risks while forming the basis for a unified European AI governance system. </p>
<p><b>Panel II: Cybersecurity and New Technologies </b><br></p>
<p>Petri Puhakainen, Cybersecurity Research Developer at VTT, mentioned that 6G is already on the horizon, "the enthusiasm of home devices to connect to the network is growing," and the spread of networks into space is creating new opportunities. It can no longer be said that the sky is the limit. </p>
<p>Noora Hammar, Founder and Chapter President of Women4Cyber Finland, emphasized the importance of ensuring expertise in the field. She also highlighted the significance of collaboration among stakeholders as broadly as possible. </p>
<p>Mikko Hyppönen, Research Director at WithSecure, stated that the problem is not losing trust, which is often feared, but rather people’s excessive trust when discussing the dangers of AI and the loss of a sense of security. This refers to, among other things, how people are increasingly being deceived in various ways. People still believe, for example, in someone claiming to need money. Money is given until it is finally realized that it was a scam. For companies, newer and growing "scam concepts" are the so-called CEO frauds. </p>
<p style="text-align: left;"> <i>"The weakest link is the human" </i></p>
<p>This was the consensus among all. It could be, for example, that efforts are made to influence experts in the field through means that do not immediately reveal the influencer’s motives until it is too late, and access to classified materials is granted. Algorithms are evolving, capacity is growing, and authoritarian states like China are investing enormous sums in quantum technology. Dangerous situations are becoming more common, but on the other hand, expertise is also growing, and for example, bitcoin is "quantum-proof." </p>
<p><b>How to Prepare for Increased Security? </b><br></p>
<p>Educational institutions are crucial, and training teachers and professionals in the field is essential. Media literacy, already mentioned earlier, needs to be improved at all levels. Critical thinking should be increased. It is important to understand that future generations are not automatically digital natives, meaning they do not understand all the opportunities and dangers that the internet offers. In conclusion, it was stated that regulations provide the necessary framework and guide us in the right direction. Therefore, they also have their value. </p>
<p>The closing words were delivered by Timo Harakka, Vice Chair of the Committee for the Future. In his summary, he noted, among other things, that multi-stakeholder collaboration is an essential operational model for the future, algorithms are increasingly present, influencing our decisions and actions, and in public discourse, more is being said about the threats brought by AI and, on the other hand, about responsibility. In the future, it will be even more important to collaborate and find common ground among all humanity. Harakka’s concluding statement on AI: "It is the most important political issue of our time." </p>
<p>The online recording of the event can be found here: <a href="https://verkkolahetys.eduskunta.fi/fi/seminaarit/finnishinternetforum_03042024">Finnish Internet Forum 3.4.2024 (eduskunta.fi)</a></p>
<p><i>The Finnish Internet Forum 2024 was hosted by the Parliament’s Committee for the Future. The program was prepared with the participation of the Finnish Internet Association, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Transport and Communications, among other partners. The annual FIF is an open multi-stakeholder forum that provides an opportunity for information, interaction, and networking on internet-related topics. </i> </p>
<p>Author<br>Nina From<br>Marketing and Sales Director <br>TIVIA ry</p>
<p><b>Information Brief: Global Digital Compact and WSIS+20 </b><br></p>
<p>After the two panels and lunch, the forum received an information briefing on UN projects that update the results of cooperation in the field of internet governance over the past two decades and create frameworks for future digital cooperation in increasingly challenging conditions. </p>
<p>David Souter, who has worked as a consultant for the UN at the start of this century, introduced (remotely) processes known as WSIS+20 and the Global Digital Compact (GDC). The former refers to the follow-up of the results of the World Summit on the Information Society organized by the UN in 2003 and 2005, while the latter document is being developed for adoption at the UN Summit of the Future (September 22-23, 2024). </p>
<p>Unlike most UN thematic summits 20-30 years ago, WSIS did not address a specific problem but rather the aspirations associated with the nascent development towards an information society. It was hoped to be human-centered, inclusive, and oriented towards development cooperation. Souter noted that these principles have stood the test of time, although the environment has completely changed, and the aspirations and intentions of that time have become reality. At the same time, however, the world has become more complex, and the optimism of the WSIS era has turned into awareness of risks and threats. The basic question, however, remains the same: how can digitalization serve the common good? </p>
<p>Twenty years after WSIS, as AI and other technologies rapidly advance, digitalization is even more central to achieving broader goals, and geopolitical developments create uncertainty. The basic question is being addressed through a process initiated by the UN Secretary-General, currently culminating in the preparation of the Global Digital Compact. Souter compared it in significance to the WSIS outcome documents: if they were negotiated under current conditions, they would focus on the GDC’s goals: closing the digital divide, unlocking the opportunities of the digital economy, promoting an open and secure digital space for all, ensuring fair international data governance, and managing disruptive technologies, including AI, for the benefit of humanity. Souter stated that the first draft of the GDC was published the previous day and noted that, at first glance, it was more substantive than many expected, including himself. </p>
<p>From Finland’s perspective, Development Policy Advisor Aki Enkenberg from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs’ Innovation and Digital Cooperation team commented on the projects. He stated that Finland has been actively involved in the WSIS process from the beginning, especially in the early years as one of the pioneers. He emphasized that as the GDC draft is revised during the negotiations in the spring, it is important to consider what the UN’s natural role in managing digital development is, taking into account that discussions are also taking place, and regulations are being built at the regional level, such as in the European Union. </p>
<p>Author<br>Yrjö Länsipuro<br>Chairman <br>Suomen Internet-yhdistys (TIVIAn jäsenyhdistys)</p>
<p><b>Below is a column by Yrjö Länsipuro, where he provides background on the Finnish Internet Forum’s global, meaningful background, goals, and operational model. Länsipuro has been organizing FIF events from the start! </b><br></p>
<p>"When the second phase of the UN World Summit on the Information Society (2005) established the global Internet Governance Forum and suggested that it would be beneficial to discuss internet governance among all stakeholders at regional and national levels, around twenty regional and approximately one hundred national forums quickly emerged worldwide. These forums allow all stakeholders—representatives of governments and parliaments, businesses, civil society, and the technical and academic community—to discuss internet-related issues. The Finnish Internet Forum (FIF) first convened in 2010 and has since been held annually (virtually during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021). </p>
<p>The Finnish Internet Forum has most often met in the auditorium of the Parliament Annex, known as the Little Parliament, thanks to the Parliament’s Committee for the Future and the Transport and Communications Committee. Both have, in turn, invited the forum to be their guest and participated in it, effectively making it a part of their official meeting program. FIF has enjoyed the use of what is perhaps the best-equipped and most prestigious meeting space in the capital, but perhaps even more important has been the dialogue between all participating stakeholders and committee members. I believe that, along with Finland, there are not many national forums where the WSIS multistakeholder principle is realized as smoothly. </p>
<p>Now that IGF and the earliest regional and national forums are approaching 20 years of age, their reports—where they exist—can reveal how the internet itself, but above all, the attitudes towards it and its future, have changed. While the hopes and anticipated opportunities of the early years have largely been realized, uncertainty about the future has increased, challenges and fears have come to the forefront, including AI, which many perceive more as a threat than an opportunity. Once again, one might quote baseball philosopher Yogi Berra: ’The future ain’t what it used to be.’ </p>
<p>But at the same time, it is understood globally that the future does not just happen but is made, and making it is politics. Around the world, at the highest political level, there has been an awakening to recognize the importance of AI governance. This is reflected in the flood of laws and regulations concerning it worldwide (EU AI Act, U.S. President’s executive order, OECD guidelines, G7 papers) in just one week last fall. As Timo Harakka, Vice Chair of the Committee for the Future, noted in his closing remarks, referring to it, governing AI for humanity is—no more, no less—the most important political question of our time." <br><img class="img-fluid o_we_custom_image" src="/web/image/56314-ab9d2210/IMG20240403091446.jpg?access_token=cdaa2c5f-e4b8-428d-a443-7d70e6fe3f5b" alt="" data-original-id="56314" data-original-src="/web/image/56314-ab9d2210/IMG20240403091446.jpg" data-mimetype="image/jpeg" data-original-title="" title="" aria-describedby="tooltip250442" style="width: 25%;" loading="lazy"><br></p>