Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/881840
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 1 OCTOBER 2017 44 Information Technology Cyber security is a continuously evolving concern, not only for Governments and public entities, but also for the private sec- tor and for individual users. As a bounder less challenge, Malta has not been spared and it must therefore adopt the neces- sary measures to address it. It was for this purpose that the National Cyber Security Strategy was articulated; so as to compre- hensively and holistically address cyber security from various perspectives, namely on governance, cybercrime, legislation, risk, awareness and education; calling for shared responsibility and commitment from the public sector, the private sector as well as citizens in the process. The Website Builder Expert article Recently, an article published online on the website Website Builder Expert claimed that Malta is the most vulnerable country to potential cybercrime attacks, attributed to a high percentage of exposed internet con- nections, lack of cyber security legislation and poor international co-operation in this regard. The article cites four sources from where the information was acquired. The first source is the European Commission's Special Eurobarometer 423 – Cyber Security Report, which is based upon data collected in 2014. Such data can already be considered out- dated, because although Malta had already embarked on activities related to cybercrime and other areas in the cyber security domain in 2015, it was not until September 2016 that it launched its first National Cyber Security Strategy (NCSS), after months of intense re- search and consultation, both locally and on a European level. Tackling cybercrime is spe- cifically one of the key goals of the NCSS. One must appreciate work has already been done since then on its implementation, although results are not expected to be achieved with immediate effect, given that the exercise requires a cultural change and is highly de- pendent upon various stakeholders. The same could be said of the Global Cyber Security Index which identified a number of areas where further work is expected to be done in relation to cyber security legislation and public awareness campaigns among others. At the time when this information was compiled, the National Cyber Security Strategy was not yet published. However, it needs to be stated that the Global Cyber Se- curity Index described Malta as "maturing", meaning that as a country it has developed complex commitments and engaged in cy- ber security programmes and initiatives. Fur- thermore, it is important to note that it was in January 2017 that Malta launched its Cyber Security Awareness Campaign entitled "Sig- urtá Onlajn G›alik", targeting various sectors of Maltese society and economy. Malta also highlighted its strong belief in awareness, education and a cyber security culture to fight cybercrime during its Presidency of the Council of the EU. Another report quoted in the article is the Microsoft Security Intelligence Report (Jan- uary-March 2017) which states that "only computers whose users have opted in to pro- vide data to Microsoft are considered when calculating malware encounter rates". Al- though this is a positive report that helps in addressing vulnerabilities, one must be cau- tious when applying such data, given that it depends on a country's optional reporting of such incidents. The last source from which the information was obtained is the National Exposure Index 2017 which does not place Malta among the 50 most exposed regions in relation to their total size on the Internet. In fact, the study conducted by Rapid7 Labs ranks Malta in po- sition 149 out of 183 nations. Hence it cannot be claimed that Malta has an exceptionally high percentage of exposed internet con- nections. Another questionable aspect of the article is about the conclusions that were derived through a calculation which did not indicate any rigorous scientific analysis and which was based upon rankings from data collect- ed at various moments in time and from data sources , each of which varied in geographi- cal coverage. Boosting cyber security on a national level When referring to cyber security on a na- tional level, MITA is one of the stakeholders in a context which involves the public sec- tor, the private sector and also the individual Cyber security: a relentless challenge