Election cybersecurity is also a matter of protecting independence  and sovereignty - Ruben Simonyan

ArmInfo.On April 28, within the framewrk of the "Cooperation for Strengthening  Cybersecurity" program, a tabletop exercise was held to ensure the  cybersecurity of electoral processes and counter hybrid threats.  Representatives from state agencies, international organizations, and  sector experts participated in the event.

Welcoming the participants,  Deputy Minister of High-Tech Industry of  Armenia Ruben Simonyan  noted that along with the cybersecurity of  critical infrastructure,  ensuring the information security of  electoral processes is also  of particular importance.

"Electoral processes are a key component of national security. If  citizens have doubts that their vote can be manipulated, then trust  in the state and the security system is undermined. Therefore,  cybersecurity of elections is also a matter of protecting  independence and sovereignty," Simonyan stated.

He added that this process is multilayered and encompasses both the  protection of personal data and countering deepfake content created  by artificial intelligence.

In turn, Nerses Yeritsyan, Chairman of the Information Systems  Regulatory Commission, referring to the results of the exercise,  noted that hybrid threats can start with minor technical signals but  quickly turn into a crisis of public perception. The same incident  can be interpreted differently, and if the official response is  delayed, the information space is quickly filled with alternative  narratives. This is why it is important that technical and  communications responses are coordinated," he noted.

The participants were also welcomed by Lars Hennig, Deputy Ambassador  of Germany to Armenia, and Josip Juric, Program manager at the EU  Delegation. The scenario-based exercise included several stages –  from cyber incident detection and initial response to crisis  management and strategic decision-making.

The event was organized by the Ministry of High-Tech Industry of the  Republic of Armenia and the Information Systems Agency of Armenia,  with the co-financing of the Federal Foreign Office of the Federal  Republic of Germany and the ISTA, and with the support of the German  Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ).