How do we boost cyber security measures? Israeli expert explains

HYDERABAD: At a time when the country is looking towards Israel as a partner, especially in the wake of a five-year Israel India Innovation Initiative Fund, Brigadier General (retd) Doron Tamir of Israel said that strong political will, sufficient funds at disposal, efficient utilisation of available talent pool and assigning top priority to cyber security were what made Israel a technological superpower.

Tamir, a founding member of the Israeli National Cyber Bureau at the Prime Minister Office in Israel, said, “Cyber security is a very serious issue. It might not be the topmost priority but it has to be among the top five priorities. If cyber security is neglected now, there will be bigger problems later.”
 Speaking on the sidelines of the third Cyber Security Conclave held in the city on Monday, Tamir said that unlike in India where only special cells take care of cyber crimes, in Israel, every police station has a trained officer who takes up only cyber crime cases. The police in Israel also have a research and development cell which develops in-house cyber security solutions and the police also have tools to fight crimes related to the dark net.

Moreover, the regional and central-level offices of the police in Israel have veteran cyber security experts from the military. People with a background in technology are also recruited,  who would be trained further to deal with cyber crimes. Stating that political will is very important, Tamir said, “Without the support of the government, it would not have been possible (for Israel to be in this position). The Prime Minister pushed us, backed us. We asked for a budget and we got it without any argument. We established a national strategy and the government adopted it. It was easy to translate this strategy into a working plan.” When asked about the importance of sufficient financial support by government, Tamir said, “It (money) is always important. It is the key for success. You need a budget for the first kick.”

Comments by Tamir on importance of political will and financial support for having a strong cyber security set up can be seen in the background of the existing situation in Telangana. Although Telangana has developed a cyber security policy, not much has been done on ground. As per senior police officers themselves,  the state has not taken interest in providing the necessary funds and manpower to strengthen cyber security departments.

‘In Israel, students learn cyber security from Class VI’

Cyber security is not just about developing infrastructure to fight digital crimes, but also about creating awareness in the society, supporting industry players and developing industry-academaia synergy. Israel, whose cyber security exports is over $7 billion, is an expert in creating such an ecosystem. Speaking with Express, Brigadier General(retd) Doron Tamir said that cyber security is incorporated in school syllabus in Israel from Grade 6 itself. For matriculation exams, it is compulsory to clear the paper on cyber security. The students who perform well in the subject after passing out get absorbed into the cyber security division once they join military as part of the compulsory military service.