Use People Power Against Hackers…

The editorial piece of this post was published in TodayOnline on 31st Aug 2017.

Over 30% of people polled in Singapore were indifferent to cybersecurity protection. This is according to a survey result commissioned and released by Cyber Security Agency (CSA) earlier last year. (updated 7th Sep 2018) 

With heighten cybersecurity incidents over the past few years, the government has taken a sharp and decisive turn to iron-clad its cyber defences.  One of the most notable moves was to unplug key or vulnerable computer systems from the internet. 

However, cyber defence is multifaceted and may be insufficient to beef up from single dimensional effort. There are several layers in our society, such as public and private sectors, and the population-at-large. 

And cyber threats can morph and burrow themselves in any of these layers.

It may be necessary to enlist the participation from our people. 

From a policy perspective, MCI/CSA has carried out a public and industry expert consultation exercise for a draft cybersecurity bill. This, with public opinion, can support overall effort in beefing up our cybersecurity practices, point out potential blind spots and mitigate risks. 

Perhaps we can take a leaf from the home team in dealing with terrorist threats, where simulated exercises are carried out to educate the public and heighten awareness. 

Recently, simulations were conducted to learn how to respond to cyber attacks with a whole-of-government approach and identified critical sectors in our industry. Going forward, this can perhaps be expanded to include the public. 

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