Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1547312
THE age of AI is here. The ev- er-evolving technology is every- where you look; from medicine to warfare, and people integrating it into their daily lives. Having an AI platform that can cut working time by half, or even more in some cases, may sound fantastic. But adopting a technol- ogy that evolves every day can pose risks that many overlook un- til they hit home really hard. These concerns are compound- ed when the technology is used by government workers handling sensitive data and information. Keeping the risks at bay is the Malta Information Technology Agency (MITA), a government entity tasked with safeguarding the state's IT infrastructure. From its headquarters in Santa Venera, MITA guards against cyberat- tacks that could pose a threat to the privacy, economic wellbeing and critical infrastructure. Cybersecurity: A continuous process Malta cannot afford to treat cy- bersecurity as a problem that can be solved once and for all. Ac- cording to a MITA agent, granted anonymity for security purposes, no country or organisation can eliminate the risk of a cyberattack entirely. "Cybersecurity is not a state of being fully protected or immune from attack," they said, adding the objective was to reduce risk, de- tect malicious activity as early as possible, respond effectively and recover services quickly. Government has established security monitoring, incident-re- sponse and resilience capabilities, which continue to develop as threats, technology and regulato- ry requirements evolve. Malta is also strengthening its national ar- rangements for incident response, preparedness, information-shar- ing and coordination. "Preparedness must be treated as continuous work rather than a one-off achievement," the agent said. Government systems are ex- posed to malicious and suspicious cyber activity on an ongoing basis, as would be expected in any large public-sector digital environment. However, the MITA agent cau- tioned against treating every at- tempted intrusion as a major security incident. Automated scanning, blocked attacks, phish- ing attempts, common malware and a significant cyber incident represent different levels of risk. The agency does not publish operational figures or detailed incident data that could expose information about its monitoring environment or security posture. Instead, its priority is to identify, assess and respond to suspicious activity according to the potential risk and impact. A growing range of threats While AI is changing the cyber- security landscape, the threats fac- ing government systems extend well beyond the technology itself. MITA identifies ransomware, phishing, social engineering, the exploitation of known vulnerabil- ities and the theft of credentials as key concerns. Attacks targeting suppliers and technology depend- encies, insider risks, hacktivism and increasingly sophisticated state-linked activity also form part of the threat landscape. One of the main challenges is the speed at which weaknesses can be discovered and exploited, the agent said. As attackers become more capa- 14 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 25 OCTOBER 2026 FEATURE Inside MITA's war room where cyberattacks AI is rewriting the rules on cyberwarfare but how prepared for the fight is the government agency tasked with safeguarding the state's IT infrastructure KARL AZZOPARDI kazzopardi@mediatoday.com.mt While AI is changing the cybersecurity landscape, the threats facing government systems extend well beyond the technolog y itself