MADINAH — A Cyber Counterterrorism International Conference, organized by the Islamic University in Madinah, kicked off here on Tuesday under the patronage of Education Minister Yousef Al-Bunyan and the participation of several officials, researchers, academics and experts.

The opening session of the conference reviewed the definition of cyberterrorism through the use of information resources or electronic means, the identification of the risks it poses to different information and communications systems, and the disruption or hacking of banking systems, which pose a threat to countries and to human beings.

The session, which attracted academics from several countries, addressed the threat of cyberterrorism in recruiting individuals online to carry out terrorist acts and ways of confronting it by combining confrontational efforts with technology and the use of legal tools.

The second session reviewed the role of the family in combating terrorism through optimal interaction with children, approaching them and discussing their problems in an educational manner, instilling the moral and intellectual values of the youth, as well as activating educational and social exchanges between student counseling units within educational institutions.

The conference continued on its second day by holding three sessions on several topics, including the social and moral responsibility of educational institutions to combat cyberterrorism, to combat the manifestations of cyberterrorism in the light of the purposes and provisions of the Shariah, the role of the international community in this area, Saudi Arabia’s efforts to combat intellectual extremism and its activities in the digital field, and the Kingdom’s experience in countering cyberterrorism. — SPA