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ISLAMABAD: Aamir Ibrahim, CEO of Jazz, said Pakistan’s digital space requires collective efforts from government bodies, telecom operators, internet service providers, businesses, and individual citizens, to effectively build resilience and protect the country’s cyber landscape from cybersecurity threats.

Speaking at the “Telecom Cybersecurity Awards 2023-24”, organised by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), Ibrahim said that while initial policy-making rests with the Ministry of IT and Telecommunications, and enforcement with PTA, the responsibility extends far beyond these bodies. “We need not just a government-led approach but a society-wide effort when it comes to cybersecurity,” he opined.

Minister of State for IT and Telecommunications Shaza Fatima Khawaja attended the event as the guest of honour.

The event was also attended by telecom and cybersecurity industry leaders, including Dr Muhammad Mukaram Khan, DG, Cyber Vigilance Division (CVD) at PTA, Ahrar Naqvi, CEO of Ebryx, Dr Haider Abbas, DG NCERT, and cybersecurity expert Rafay Baloch.

Chairman PTA Major General Hafeezur Rehman (retired) was also one of the distinguished guests.

Ibrahim highlighted the increasing vulnerabilities in the digital space. He said that Jazz, which serves over 71 million telecom customers, 44 million banking customers, and 15 million video platform users, operates 36 data centres nationwide. This scale, he explained, brings inherent risks. He that Jazz’s systems process close to one billion calls and 500 million messages daily, alongside $100 million worth of JazzCash transactions.

“Cybersecurity is a top priority as we manage these touch points across our data centres,” he said.

The Jazz CEO also discussed the economic costs of cybersecurity failures, saying that the global economy risks losing $6 trillion to cyber threats annually.

In Pakistan, this translates into around $20 billion of lost economic opportunity, a staggering amount for a country in need of foreign investment and financial stability, he said.

He warned that despite robust defences, attacks are inevitable, stressing that it is a matter of “when, not if” an attack will occur and how swiftly recovery efforts are enacted.

“We have to be extraordinarily vigilant. It’s no longer about if you have been attacked, but how quickly you can respond,” he said.

With Jazz being the first Pakistani telecom operator to achieve ISO 27001 accreditation for information security, Ibrahim said that the company is committed to maintaining high cybersecurity standards through its Security Operations Centre (SOC) and a skilled workforce.

He said that initially, the telecom industry was facing a shortage of skilled and talented workforce. He praised Pakistan’s universities for offering accredited cybersecurity courses to address the shortage of skilled professionals in this field.

Ibrahim also highlighted the importance of personal responsibility in cybersecurity. “We take extraordinary measures to secure our homes, and we need a similar approach to protect our data,” he maintained.

Cautioning against the spread of misinformation, he urged the audience to verify and share responsibly, stating that cybersecurity includes guarding against “fake news” and harmful content that can demoralise the public.

Ibrahim acknowledged the PTA’s role in organising the event and stressed the need for continuous collaboration and knowledge-sharing to build a secure digital future.

“This is not a once-a-year conversation,” he said. “It’s an ongoing effort, where everyone, including businesses, service providers, and citizens must come together to protect not only our data but also our nation’s digital sovereignty.”

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024

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