News
Danish authorities vulnerable to espionage
Christian Wenande
May 6th, 2016
Share
This article is more than 8 years old.
Denmark’s foreign policy watchdog not impressed with insecure lines of communication
According to Denmark’s foreign policy watchdog Peter Taksøe-Jensen, the Danish authorities’ lines of communication are poorly protected and vulnerable to espionage.
Taksøe-Jensen, who is also Denmark’s ambassador to India, contended that Denmark is in dire need of a stronger and broader system than the one the authorities currently employ.
“The system the authorities use to communicate securely today is not very widespread, not particularly robust and based on a platform that isn’t Danish,” Taksøe-Jensen told Information newspaper.
“It’s quite expensive to set up the stations required, and that has led to them being included in the austerity cuts. Therefore, there is not a proper net through which the authorities can convey sensitive information that others can’t listen in on. I think we need to see if we can improve that.”
READ MORE: Denmark’s future foreign and defence policies to be more grounded in strategic interests
Frayed lines of communication
Taksøe-Jensen, who presented his proposal for Denmark’s future foreign and security policies earlier this week, revealed that the authorities lack the solutions needed to handle and exchange classified information.
The vulnerability will alarm many given the documented interest in Danish-related highly-sensitive information from the likes of the US, China and Russia.
The ambassador maintained that certain areas of the Foreign Ministry, embassies and the central administration were in need of an encrypted dialogue possibility.
Share
