Companies today rely heavily on digital trade. This reliance comes with cybersecurity risks which are only heightened when their products and services cross borders. Foreign countries can abuse digital products such as collecting “private data” and “planting vulnerabilities”. Failure of addressing these cybersecurity concerns can sometimes cost international companies their whole business. Governments often take different approaches to address these concerns. Therefore, it becomes difficult for transnational businesses to negotiate with “a fragmented system of rules and requirements that change country by country, and often day by day”. However, the article proposes that companies should formulate their international digital strategy around a few key factors that may predict the decisions governments will make on their digital trade policy. These factors include assessing the government’s capability to combat cyber risks, the amount of “trust between governments and businesses”, and evaluating geopolitics. International companies can create “an effective cybersecurity governance culture” within their organizations, participate in cyberpolitics, being prepared to temporarily exit and reinter the market if needed, and help host governments become more capable of handling cybersecurity concerns. Additionally, building and maintaining trust with host governments is crucial in addressing the cybersecurity anxieties of different countries.
