Gawkowski: Russia is no longer hiding it is at cyberwar with Poland

According to Gawkowski, in 2024, Poland detected twice as many cybersecurity incidents as in 2023 and three times as many as in 2022. A large portion of these incidents were clearly aimed at Poland, particularly from Russia.

Gawkowski emphasized that Russia's attacks are deliberate, exploiting vulnerabilities in Poland's infrastructure.

"A large part of them is clearly directed at Poland from Russia. Russia no longer hides that it is at cyberwar with Poland. They attack and do so deliberately. They know where we have our soft underbelly," said the minister.

A major concern is the cybersecurity of Polish local governments. In response, the Ministry of Digital Affairs, in collaboration with the state research institute NASK, has launched the "Cybersecure Local Government" program. This initiative provides local governments with up to 850,000 PLN in EU funding to improve digital security.

Gawkowski also stressed the need for digital legislation within the European Union but cautioned that such regulations should not lead to excessive over-regulation.

MEP Borys Budka spoke at the conference about the key role of digitalization in achieving a fair transition within the EU, noting that the next five years will focus on improving digital competencies, not only for individuals but also within industry.

"We know very well that the next five years will be marked by the growth of digital skills. Not only in terms of personal digital skills ... but also in terms of digital skills in industry. It is very important that digitization is used to build the competitiveness of the European economy," said the MEP said.

According to Poland's "Digitalization Strategy," by 2035, 85% of citizens should have basic digital competencies, and 50% should have advanced skills. This represents a significant increase compared to the 2022 Digital Economy and Society Index.

In the discussion on digital competencies, Deputy Minister of Education Katarzyna Lubnauer highlighted the rapid introduction of programming education in Polish schools, although she pointed out that there has not been a corresponding mass effort to train teachers.

"There are growing doubts about what digital skills young students should have, what they should really be learning – programming or, to a greater extent, using digital tools. ... Soon artificial intelligence may replace us in programming, but other digital skills are needed," said Katarzyna Lubnauer.

She stressed the challenge of transitioning from traditional education to one that aligns with the digital revolution, and the evolving importance of digital literacy, such as cybersecurity and the risks of social media.

The Digital Skills Summit was organized by the Ministry of Digitization in partnership with NASK and the Silesian University of Technology, aiming to support digital transformation and promote collaboration to improve the digital competencies of society.