TM, Cybersecurity Malaysia in pact to strengthen national cyber security

• Alliance will build greater cybersecurity awareness, enhance Malaysia’s cybersecurity maturity level
• Both parties to leverage each other’s expertise, technical capabilities

TELEKOM Malaysia Bhd (TM) via its enterprise and public sector business solutions arm, TM ONE, sealed a memorandum of collaboration (MoC) with CyberSecurity Malaysia (CSM) to empower and strengthen the level of cybersecurity in Malaysia.

In a statement, TM said the MoC was signed in a virtual event by Amirudin Abdul Wahab, chief executive officer (CEO) of CyberSecurity Malaysia and Imri Mokhtar, group chief executive officer, TM,

Also present was Mohd Azumi Mohamed, chairman of the board of directors, CyberSecurity Malaysia; Mohd Bakke Salleh, chairman of TM; and  Malaysia's communications and multimedia Saifuddin Abdullah.

“We are honoured to collaborate with CSM in this initiative, which is aimed at elevating the nation’s cyber security network and ecosystem and strengthening Malaysia’s self-reliance in cyberspace. It is vital for the adoption of cyber security to be in tandem with the pace of transformation in order to secure our digital economy,” said Bakke.

“The collaboration will enable both parties to enhance the ability of the public and business sectors to fend off cyberattacks and make cybersecurity a key thrust towards a sustainable digital economy, digital government and digital society.”

Meanwhile, CSM's chairman Mohd Azumi Mohamed said, “CSM is strongly committed to ensure the e-security aspects of the country and will continue to identify areas that could endanger national security and the well-being of the people,” 

“The main focus is to strengthen capacity through monitoring and providing effective response towards cyber threats and attacks to avoid major impact. The partnership will enable both entities to merge and benefit from each other's expertise, thus enabling both organisations to act as commercial strategic partners locally and internationally.”

The initiative between both parties include the sharing of global best practices, leveraging each other’s technical capabilities and is set to deliver optimal cyber security technology solutions to local enterprises and public sectors, CSM said.

TM's role includes offering end-to-end comprehensive cyber security solutions to both Malaysia and the world. This is delivered principally through CYDEC, a portfolio of active cyber defense capabilities, managed security products and services, powered by TM’s Global Security Operations Center, CSM said.

CYDEC will pave the way for greater digital trust and cyber resilience in the digital era, it added.

Another key aspect of the collaboration is to explore the development of advanced security monitoring capabilities by tapping on TM ONE’s extensive cloud infrastructure, CSM said.

Both parties will endeavour to advance digital forensic capabilities and enhance incident response services. This will eventually feature cyber-outreach, a capability and capacity development programme, which CSM claimed will help to upscale the skillset and digital intelligence potential of Malaysia's public and private sector workforce.

This MoC also signals the continued urgency of addressing the relentless surge of cyber threats impacting both the public and business sectors as a fundamental step to enabling a sustainable, safe and successful digital society.