Responding to recent media reports suggesting friendly nations' intentions to assist Taiwan in diplomatic breakthroughs. Still, Minister Tang was reluctant to participate as a minister; the Ministry of Digital Affairs (moda) clarifies misconceptions regarding Minister Audrey Tang's participation in United Nations conferences. The ministry emphasizes that the claims made are inconsistent with facts and aims to avoid misunderstandings and disturbances among friendly nations.

The moda explains that last October, the United Nations Internet Governance Forum (IGF) held its annual international conference in Kyoto, Japan. At the invitation of the United States, the moda participated in a forum held by the US on the first day of the conference to attend the official UN sessions without compromising Taiwan's dignity. Minister Tang registered as Chairperson of the National Institute of Cyber Security to substantively engage in government group discussions.

The moda highlights that the IGF annual conference, a formal United Nations event, encourages stakeholders to participate in innovative policy discussions on internet governance. Countries or international organizations, with the assembly's consent, may host various sessions during the conference, as demonstrated by the United States' forum titled "The DFI: Principles to Action," held on the first day of last year's IGF annual conference.

The United States invited Minister Tang to participate in their DFI forum on the first day of the IGF, representing Taiwan as one of the signatories of the DFI since April 2022. However, due to the registration system's requirements, which necessitate selecting a United Nations member country that the attendee's department belongs to when participating as an official, Minister Tang registered under the National Institute of Cyber Security to ensure Taiwan's representation without compromising its dignity.

Anticipating potential actions by certain unfriendly entities against the physical presence of the minister, the decision was made to participate in the first-day DFI forum online. However, seizing this unique opportunity for exchanges with essential figures and officials from friendly nations on relevant issues, Minister Tang decided to travel to Japan and engage in numerous discussions on the sidelines of the event.

Regarding passport-related issues, the moda clarifies that Governor Gavin Newsom of California invited Minister Tang to attend a closed-door meeting in the United States in March last year. Discovering the loss of her passport just before departure and considering the official nature of the trip, Minister Tang inquired whether she could travel to the US using a diplomatic passport. After deliberation by the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT/T), AIT decided to issue Minister Tang a B1/B2 visa, which she never claimed as a diplomatic breakthrough.

Minister Tang traveled to the US using her diplomatic passport to attend the Freedom Online Coalition (FOC) high-level meeting in September of the same year. Once again, AIT issued Minister Tang a B1/B2 visa as per standard procedure. Throughout the process, the moda complied with all security checks, as requested by the organizers, without seeking any special treatment. Claims suggesting otherwise are baseless provocations.

In fact, Minister Tang's participation in the conference, which was joined by prominent figures such as Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights Uzra Zeya, Digital Ambassador Nathaniel C. Fick from the Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy, as well as digital and diplomatic leaders from 38 countries including France, Estonia, and Lithuania, to discuss issues related to addressing risks posed by emerging technologies.

The moda reaffirms its commitment to ongoing exchanges and cooperation with the United States in advanced technologies such as digitalization, industrial exchange, cybersecurity, and AI. The moda tried establishing multiple contact points and channels with the US to maintain close and friendly relations. When the US participates in the multinational cyber defense exercise (CODE) hosted by the Administration for Cyber Security of the moda, Taiwan reciprocates by sending representatives to similar exercises in the US. Several US officials, including Laura Rosenberger, Chair of the American Institute in Taiwan, Commissioner Brendan Carr of the Federal Communications Commission, and Laurie E. Locascio, Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), have visited the moda for exchanges.

Regarding comments and expectations from legislators regarding the ministry's performance, the Ministry of Digital Affairs highlights its proactive efforts in implementing the Executive Yuan's "New Generation Fraud Prevention Strategy Action Plan 1.5 Edition," strengthening measures to combat fraudulent messages and financial flows of scams. Furthermore, initiatives such as enhancing management over third-party payments, e-commerce, and gaming points and establishing government-exclusive short-code SMS platforms and URLs have been implemented to improve trust in government communications and combat fraud.

To counter foreign information manipulation and intervention, the moda collaborates with relevant law enforcement agencies and cross-border platforms such as Meta and Google to establish rapid communication channels for reporting illegal activities. Initiatives such as actively blocking advertisements from foreign sites and expediting handling high-risk accounts have been undertaken, with close coordination with LINE corporation. 

Additionally, the National Institute of Cyber Security actively invites relevant law enforcement agencies, such as the Investigation Bureau of the Ministry of Justice and the Criminal Investigation Bureau of the Ministry of the Interior, to exchange techniques for message analysis, sharing relevant research outcomes with participating agencies and incorporating feedback for continuous improvement. Meanwhile, the National Institute of Cyber Security is also actively cooperating with third-party verification units, such as the "Taiwan Fact Checking Center," to use AI technology to analyze controversial information and provide traceability and consulting services to enhance response capabilities.

Moreover, the Taiwan Network Information Center (TWNIC) under the Ministry of Digital Affairs has established a DNS RPZ (Response Policy Zone) mechanism, allowing for the suspension of domain name resolution based on court judgments or administrative penalties authorized by law. Law enforcement agencies can urgently apply RPZ to block domains involved in major financial crimes, counterfeit government websites, fraudulent websites, and counterfeit websites during elections. Last year alone, 34,561 cases were blocked, a significant increase from the previous year's 2,945.