Call for tech defenses to protect Thailand's communication sovereignty

Thailand faces a critical need to bolster its "communication sovereignty" to safeguard national interests against the growing influence of global technology platforms and emerging low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite networks, warned AM Thanapant Raicharoen, a commissioner at the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC).

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Threats to national security have evolved far beyond conventional military confrontations

Thanapant stated that national security threats have evolved beyond traditional military conflicts, citing cybercrime, call center scams, and online fraud as significant economic damages. He highlighted a more subtle yet potentially far-reaching challenge: the erosion of communication sovereignty, which he defined as a nation's and its citizens' ability to control, govern, and protect their communication systems, information flows, and digital infrastructure from external domination.

In the current digital era, Thanapant asserted that communication sovereignty is as strategically vital as territorial sovereignty was in previous generations. He identified over-the-top (OTT) platforms, artificial intelligence (AI), and LEO satellite networks as key factors transforming the communications landscape, making communication sovereignty a defining national security challenge for Thailand in the coming decade.

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Thailand now faces a more subtle but potentially far-reaching challenge: the erosion of communication sovereignty.

Thanapant outlined four critical dimensions of communication sovereignty. Firstly, infrastructure sovereignty, concerning a nation's control over telecommunications assets like submarine cables, mobile networks, and satellite systems. This is becoming more pressing as global tech companies expand into connectivity services, particularly with LEO satellite constellations offering direct-to-consumer broadband without relying heavily on local infrastructure. "If global operators are able to provide end-to-end communications services directly to consumers, countries may gradually lose influence over key layers of their digital ecosystem," Thanapant cautioned.

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In the digital era, communication sovereignty has become as strategically important as territorial sovereignty was in previous generations.

Secondly, data sovereignty is crucial, as data is now a strategic national asset. Thailand risks losing control over the collection, utilization, and monetization of vast amounts of personal, behavioral, and economic data generated by its users, which is increasingly processed by multinational tech corporations. The other two dimensions, though not detailed in the provided text, would likely pertain to content and the digital economy, further emphasizing the need for national control in the digital realm.

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If global operators are able to provide end-to-end communications services directly to consumers, countries may gradually lose influence over key layers of their digital ecosystem.