HUNGARY: DiscussionPoint Quarterly: the brand-new event series of the SAO Hungary
DiscussionPoint Quarterly - or DPQ - is an exciting new series of four events of the State Audit Office of Hungary, which has been launched on 23 March 2022. In the wake of and inspired by the highly successful Webinar Wednesdays virtual seminar series taking place in 2021, our institution has developed a revised concept further expanding the framework of online communication regarding interactivity.
We all miss the benefits of personal meetings, of which dynamics largely contribute to the success of any activity and joint work. Now, it is clear that personal interactions cannot be replaced by virtual ones, however the SAO Hungary has made an attempt to somehow bring colleagues a bit closer again, even if they are physically apart. We have all experienced that even though communication between SAIs was channeled to the online space, unfortunately webinars and online conferences often reduce the participants’ role to a simple audience, providing little opportunity for asking relevant questions and discussing them effectively. They give even less space to create joint products, which could be considered as the essence of cooperation. This has motivated the SAO to offer experts the opportunity to compile together a short video processing the theme of the respective DPQ events.
Every registered participant contributes to the content of the animated video, and they share their thoughts with the help of a personalized so-called 'SAI Character'. Our objective is to involve the participants in the video making process as much as possible and to allow them to 'raise their voice' during the programs, bringing back the diversity and richness of SAIs’ international community’s joint work.
DPQ1 - Cybersecurity risks and good practices in the operation of the SAIs
One of the most significant challenges of our days is how to keep up with the quickly developing, increasingly digitalised world. The digital solutions present in every segment of our life have several advantages: they make our everyday life more comfortable, faster and simpler, on the one hand, and free up resources, thus increasing efficiency and productivity, on the other. With these benefits, however, we must not forget about the risks either. In addition to data protection, data security and increased compliance with the GDPR rules, it is also extremely important to devote particular attention to protection against potential cyberattacks, data phishing and data falsification.
Cyber security or digital security means the totality of steps seeking to guarantee the protection of digital data, tools and processes. Protecting the security of the digital space represents common interest and responsibility for the entire society in which not only the citizens but also the state and market sectors play significant roles, especially in a difficult and complicated period when security has become even more valuable than before. It is essential, therefore, to provide steady circumstances in the space where we are present most of our lives, which is the virtual space today. Please see the video HERE.
The SAO Hungary considers it a priority to call attention to cybersecurity risks and to disseminate its good practices in order to deal with the dangers of cyberspace, therefore the main topic of the first DiscussionPointQuarterly was 'The cybersecurity risks and good practices in the operation of the audit institutions'. The event shed light upon the fact that cyber threat has become increasingly common among the audit institutions too, the mitigation of which is a shared objective. The participating institutions also agreed about the necessity of shaping the attitude on information security, in which SAIs would play an important role in the future.
