If such an international pact isn't created, a dangerous cyber arms race will ensue, Merkel warned at a high-level security conference that ended Sunday in Munich.
Hague and German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere at the same conference called for greater international coordination when building up cyber defense lines.
Cybersecurity made headlines last year when a computer virus called Stuxnet was used to sabotage Iran's uranium enrichment facilities. Western governments and companies have long complained about cyberattacks, some of them believed to have originated in China.
De Maiziere said the German government's Web presence is attacked 'four, five times per day.' He said the Group of Eight should tackle the issue at its next summit."
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Cyber Defense
The US military is preparing for 21st Century electronic warfare and cyber terrorism. A joint US Cyber Command and four service cyber commands have been set up.
Their mission is to defend American military networks and civilian American infrastructure from cyber terrorism and from foreign government hackers.
The officers leading these cyber commands explain how they are organized, how they operate, and how they will protect the United States from foreign military hackers, intelligence agencies, and cyber terrorists.
13,450 words
