Public interest groups will join government officials, academics, attorneys, industry representatives and others in Toronto, Canada, on Friday, 12 October alongside the meeting of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to discuss ICANN’s involvement in internet governance issues such as security and freedom online.

The ICANN Noncommercial Users Constituency (NCUC) is sponsoring a daylong event entitled, “ICANN & Internet Governance: Security & Freedom in a Connected World.” There will be remote participation available.

The 45th ICANN meeting will take place from 14-18 October. ICANN is the technical oversight body of the internet domain name system.

“Cyberspace is at a watershed moment. Global civil society, now increasingly recognised as an important stakeholder in cyberspace governance, needs to step up to the challenge,” Ron Deibert, one of the event speakers, said in a release. “What is required is nothing less than a serious and comprehensive security strategy for cyberspace that addresses the very real threats that plague governments and corporations, addresses national and other security concerns in a forthright manner, while protecting and preserving open networks of information and communication.” Deibert is director of the Canada Centre for Global Security Studies and The Citizen Lab, an “inter-disciplinary research and development hothouse” at the University of Toronto.

Other speakers include new ICANN CEO Fadi Chehade, Fiona Alexader from the US Department of Commerce, and Wendy Seltzer, founder of the Chilling Effects Clearinghouse.

Panel topics include: Civil Liberties, Security and Law Enforcement; Controversial Top-Level Domain Names, Freedom of Expression and Intellectual Property Rights; The Changing Geo-Political Landscape of Internet Governance: Implications for ICANN; and Bringing Human Rights into ICANN’s Policy Development Process.