Microsoft Forms Asia Pacific Public Sector Cyber Security Executive Council With Seven Markets

Microsoft has set up the first Asia Pacific Public Sector Cyber Security Executive Council, a coalition that puts policymakers from government and state agencies in the same room as technology and industry leaders. Its purpose is to create a strong channel of communication for tackling cyber threats and sharing best practice between the participating countries, on the premise that no single organisation can fight cybercrime effectively on its own.

The case for such a body rests on the scale of the problem. Cybercrime disrupts economies worldwide, costing individual and business victims trillions of dollars in losses and operational damage, threatening national security and eroding trust in the digital economy and the Internet. Asia Pacific also meets malware and ransomware more often than the global average, at 1.6 and 1.7 times the rate of the rest of the world respectively.

Who sits on the council

The council has 15 policymakers from Brunei, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, supported by Microsoft's cybersecurity professionals. Microsoft presents it as a substantial commitment to speeding up public-private partnership in cybersecurity and to wider sharing of threat intelligence, so that members are better placed to respond when an attack happens. The central ambition is a community in which threat intelligence, technology and resources are shared openly and promptly. Members will meet online every quarter to keep information on threats and solutions flowing.

The council was formally launched at the Microsoft APAC Public Sector Summit on 6 May 2021, during a cybersecurity panel titled "Building a resilient cyber defence global ecosystem". Ann Johnson, Corporate Vice President, Security Compliance and Identity at Microsoft, chaired the session, joined by three founding members from CyberSecurity Malaysia, the National Information Society Agency Korea and the National Cybersecurity Agency Thailand.

Johnson told the panel that the cybercrime trends Microsoft observes tend to track the issues of the day, with attackers repurposing their infrastructure to exploit whatever is in the news. Organisations and governments, she said, need a zero-trust mindset to stay protected. Microsoft described the council's timing as critical, giving those involved a way to work together on making national cyber defence a priority.

At the same summit, in a keynote fireside chat, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella spoke about how the company is helping nations build a digital society. He said Microsoft had seen a second wave of digital transformation over the past year, with governments speeding up technology initiatives to become more resilient and to transform. He stressed that the public sector needs a strong digital foundation to succeed, built on a data-driven strategy, and reaffirmed Microsoft's support for national empowerment plans through new data centre regions in New Zealand, Indonesia and Malaysia.

Why governments want the tech sector involved

Because private companies own and operate most technology infrastructure, Microsoft argues that governments must form coalitions with leading technology firms to run effective cyber defence strategies and protect the region from attackers.

Dato' Ts. Dr. Haji Amirudin Abdul Wahab FASc, CEO of CyberSecurity Malaysia, called cybersecurity an important national agenda that cannot be left to IT teams alone. He said it should be a priority and a responsibility for every individual, since cybercrime keeps rising exponentially as data and digital connectivity spread. In his view the coalition builds stronger partnerships with industry leaders and practitioners, helping members reinforce their security postures and fight cybercrime.

ChangHee Yun, Ph.D. candidate and Principal Researcher at the AI/Future Strategy Center of the National Information Society Agency Korea, spoke about the council's future role. He said pooling the collective intelligence of Asia Pacific nations is essential for sharing practices and strategies that let them solve security problems faster and more proactively. Because the countries face similar threats, he expects the partnership to keep them ahead of attackers and to raise standards across the cybersecurity ecosystem.

Group Captain Amorn Chomchoey, Acting Deputy Secretary General of the National Cybersecurity Agency Thailand, described the council as an instrumental platform for cooperation between the member nations. He said the closer relationships it creates should help them anticipate threats as early as possible and stop them before cybercrime grows into another "pandemic" for the online world.

Training, workshops and existing regional forums

Through the council, government agencies and state leaders join a forum that includes Microsoft and its network of cybersecurity industry advisors. Members will share best practice and take part in Microsoft security certification training, dedicated workshops and hands-on lab sessions, with the aim of raising workforce digital skills and narrowing the cybersecurity talent gap in the participating countries. They will also exchange experience and knowledge about cyber threats and work to deepen cooperation between countries. The effort builds on existing cybersecurity partnerships in the region, including those under Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Global Forum on Cyber Expertise.

Sherie Ng, General Manager, Public Sector, Microsoft Asia Pacific, said cyber threats and attacks are unavoidable in an interconnected world, which makes collective strength and collaboration essential. She called the launch a first step towards defending communities online, and said the founding members, who include government leaders, policymakers, regulators and industry stakeholders from across the region, share a mission to build a strong coalition that strengthens cyber defence.