Paris Call for Trust and Security in Cyberspace (2018)

As of 30 September 2026. Information only, not legal advice – see the disclaimer.

The Paris Call was announced by President Emmanuel Macron on 12 November 2018 on the occasion of the Internet Governance Forum held at UNESCO and the first Paris Peace Forum. It is a declaration of support for nine common principles for securing cyberspace, addressed to States, companies and civil society alike. It reaffirms that international law, including the UN Charter, applies to the use of ICTs by States, and refers to the norms of responsible State behaviour developed within the United Nations (ict_norms). The Call creates no legal obligations. The United States and the European Union announced their support in November 2021; according to The Register (2021), China and the Russian Federation had not joined. It is referred to in discussions on multi-stakeholder approaches to cyber stability, election security and the prohibition of private “hack back”.

The nine principles are:

• 1. Protect individuals and infrastructure – prevent and recover from malicious cyber activities that threaten or cause significant, indiscriminate or systemic harm to individuals and critical infrastructure.
• 2. Protect the Internet – prevent activity that intentionally and substantially damages the general availability or integrity of the public core of the Internet.
• 3. Defend electoral processes – strengthen capacity to prevent malign interference by foreign actors aimed at undermining electoral processes through malicious cyber activities.
• 4. Defend intellectual property – prevent ICT-enabled theft of intellectual property, including trade secrets, with the intent of providing competitive advantages.
• 5. Non-proliferation – develop ways to prevent the proliferation of malicious software and practices intended to cause harm.
• 6. Lifecycle security – strengthen the security of digital processes, products and services throughout their lifecycle and supply chain.
• 7. Cyber hygiene – support efforts to strengthen advanced cyber hygiene for all actors.
• 8. No private hack back – take steps to prevent non-State actors, including the private sector, from hacking back, for their own purposes or those of other non-State actors.
• 9. International norms – promote the widespread acceptance and implementation of international norms of responsible behaviour and confidence-building measures in cyberspace.

Principle 3 addresses foreign interference in elections through malicious cyber activities; according to the Government of Canada, Canada co-leads work on this principle with Microsoft and the Alliance for Securing Democracy. Principle 2 corresponds to the concept of the “public core of the Internet”. The Call does not itself define prohibited conduct under international law; it refers to existing international law and UN norms.

• 2021-11: The United States (10 November 2021) and the European Union announced their support for the Paris Call.

• ict_norms
• charter
• positions
• cyber_sanctions
• nis2_cer
• budapest

• Paris Call for Trust and Security in Cyberspace, official website, accessed 2026-09-30
• Paris Peace Forum, Paris Call for Trust and Security in Cyberspace (policy initiative page), accessed 2026-09-30
• Government of Canada, Frequently asked questions – Paris Call (2020), accessed 2026-09-30
• The Register, USA supports Paris Call (11 November 2021), accessed 2026-09-30

• 2026-09-30: Entry created.