Government leaders describe their own cyber security cells as incompetent.
In light of recent cyber attacks on several government websites, a Parliamentary Committee has voiced worry about the effectiveness of the Cyber Security Cell.
The Standing Committee on Information Technology (IT) and Telecommunication stated this on Monday during a briefing on the operations of the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication (MoITT).
The Standing Committee, chaired by MNA Mir Khan Muhammad Jamali, said that it is dissatisfied with the performance of various departments under the MoITT, especially the Cyber Security Cell, and ordered the MoITT to correct the latter’s inefficiency.
Naz Baloch, a committee member, said that the Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) website, which holds sensitive information on all Pakistanis, had been hacked twice recently.
Officials from of the MoITT also told the committee that work on the Cyber Security Policy has begun, which is why the National Cyber Security Authority (NCSA), National Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT), and Sectoral CERT will be established. Additionally, efforts are being made to employ specialists and construct modern labs for national certification.
They also stated that the MoITT has drafted the CERT guidelines, which would be sent to the Cabinet after Ministry of Law approval.
Furthermore, it highlighted the modification of the Cyber Crime, Cyber Security, and Social Media Rules, since Pakistan has a history of banning social media services under the pretext of the content that appears on their sites.
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Apart from that, the committee expressed dissatisfaction with efforts to restore telecommunications infrastructure after the recent floods that affected half of the nation.
