San Salvador, El Salvador — Montreat College President Dr. Paul J. Maurer delivered an address on November 14 at the 30th Parliamentary Intelligence-Security Forum, hosted by the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador.
Recognized as a leading venue where lawmakers and experts collaborate to confront evolving security threats and forge strategic partnerships, the international gathering brought together parliamentarians, government ministers, and security officials from more than 40 nations to discuss pressing challenges in cybersecurity, intelligence, and global security. Maurer’s invitation to speak was extended by Ernesto Castro, President of the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador.
In his remarks, Dr. Maurer emphasized the urgent global need for ethical leadership in cybersecurity.
“My objective today in talking to you about cybersecurity is singular: to give you a tool for your country in the war against cybercrime,” he told attendees. “Cybersecurity is the economic and security threat of our time, but the problem of cybersecurity is not principally a technical problem. It is principally a human problem. Therefore, the solution to cybersecurity is not principally a technical solution, but a human solution.”
Highlighting Montreat College’s longstanding leadership in cyber ethics education, Maurer detailed the origins of the Code of Honor: Embracing Ethics in Cybersecurity, a curriculum and book he co-authored with leading cybersecurity expert Ed Skoudis. The project was funded through a grant from the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA). The NSA oversees the Centers of Academic Excellence (CAE) program, which accredits cybersecurity programs nationwide, including Montreat College, which was first designated in 2017.
Maurer explained that the Code of Honor is designed to strengthen the ethical decision-making of cyber professionals at every level.
“If your cybersecurity leaders and operators are not people of ethics and character, your technology does not matter very much,” he emphasized. “In other words, AI is not going to solve the problem of cybersecurity. If anything, it only complicates it.”
Maurer outlined the Code’s eight ethical commitments, calling them essential to combating cybercrime’s unprecedented global cost, which has surged to an estimated $10 trillion this year.
“If you do not have trustworthy people in your cybersecurity profession, you do not have much,” Maurer said. “You must be able to trust the professionals you train in your universities and employ in your corporations.”
Maurer encouraged the leaders in the room to use the Code of Honor to strengthen their cybersecurity workforce and educational systems. He also highlighted Montreat College’s fully online Bachelor of Science program in Cybersecurity grounded in technical expertise and ethical formation.
“If your nation needs to grow its cybersecurity workforce and you lack the necessary educational resources—either in quality, quantity, or accessibility—Montreat College can help,” he said.
For more information or to purchase The Code of Honor: Embracing Ethics in Cybersecurity, visit www.cybercodeofhonor.com.