Türkiye must claim cyber sovereignty amid growing digital threats: Communications director

Merve Aydogan

Türkiye must assert its sovereignty over cyberspace through urgent legal measures as every country now treats the digital domain as a matter of national security, Communications Director Burhanettin Duran said Friday.

Speaking at an event titled “Communication in the Century of Türkiye” in Istanbul, Duran pointed to the intensified competition at various political and social levels. and said every country “now views cyberspace as a domain of sovereignty and is taking measures accordingly.”

“As is known, with the legal regulations that have recently been made and will be made in Türkiye, we are obliged to assert our sovereignty in this regard,” he said.

Duran warned that Türkiye faces “multi-dimensional” challenges, ranging from protecting children online to safeguarding critical national capabilities.

“This is truly a multi-layered challenge, and urgent measures need to be taken,” he added.

He also noted that digitalization has made it easier to shape public perception through algorithms, with social media increasingly used as a hybrid warfare tool by numerous countries in recent years.