For more than 160 years, the Red Cross emblem has protected humanitarian organizations in times of war. But as conflict increasingly moves into cyberspace, new protections are needed for digital infrastructure.

In this episode of Business Technology Perspectives, I speak with Samit D'Cunha, legal advisor at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), about the groundbreaking Digital Emblem Project.

Samit explains how this modern emblem uses cryptographic certificates and DNS protocols to designate digital assets as protected under international humanitarian law. We explore the rise in cyberattacks on hospitals and humanitarian networks during armed conflict, and why creating a recognized, trustworthy signal of digital neutrality is now a moral and legal imperative.

We discuss:

• How the Digital Emblem mirrors the protections of its physical counterpart
• The technical infrastructure behind the project and how it ensures global applicability
• Legal, political, and diplomatic challenges in gaining global adoption
• The need for collaboration across governments, tech companies, and humanitarian actors
• What comes next as cyberwarfare becomes a greater threat to humanitarian operations

As the nature of conflict evolves, so too must the symbols that protect those who help others. This conversation is essential listening for anyone working at the intersection of cybersecurity, ethics, and international law.