The Internet is singularly the most crucial resource available to nations, to improve socio-economic development. It is the largest equaliser, and those who don't embrace it risk being left behind.
At the same time, cyber crime is a major challenge in SA, and cyber security plays an ongoing role in the development of ICT. A safe Internet is crucial to the health of any country's economy.
So said deputy minister of telecommunications and postal services, Hlengiwe Mkhize, speaking at ITWeb Security Summit 2016, at Vodacom World in Midrand, this morning.
"To secure our online space, we need everyone to embark on a policy of zero tolerance for cyber crimes, and to focus on the right technologies available to fight these scourges."
Speaking of government's efforts to boost the security of citizens' information, she said for some time, government worked in silos. "The police were looking at specific technologies they wanted to use, as were the Department of Justice, the Department of Communications. They worked with SITA then, [and] there was no platform to unify activities."
She said the National Cybersecurity Hub, launched in October last year, will make a difference, and it is the responsibility of all stakeholders to take advantage of it, and assist in the development of the right kind of technologies to secure our online space.
"The hub is a common platform, and its mandate is clear. There is accountability within the hub. It is run with an independent secretariat. At the same time, there are efforts being made to strengthen SITA."
The hub arose out of the 2012 Cybersecurity Policy Framework as a platform to help citizens, as well as private and public sector organisations to use the Internet safely. It was developed through the involvement of various stakeholders, including government, the banking industry, the ICT industry as a whole, as well as academic institutions.
She said it was established to serve as a central point for collaboration between industry, government and individuals on all matters pertaining to cyber security in SA. It will be used to monitor any security events or incidents, and hopefully become something of an early warning system for stakeholders, to help them keep an eye on emerging threats, she noted.
According to Mkhize, it will also act as an information centre for solutions on how to deal with the various threats and allow stakeholders to get updates on the global situation, to help them launch pre-emptive measures to strengthen themselves against cyber attacks.
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