Singapore International Cyber Week 2019 - Highlights and Testimonials

1              The fourth edition of the Singapore International Cyber Week (SICW), the region’s most established cybersecurity event, successfully concluded with a record 10,000 participants from over 60 countries. The visitorship numbers saw a two-fold increase from the 5,000 participants in the inaugural 2016 edition. Organised by the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA), SICW 2019 saw the participation of over 170 speakers, 300 sponsors and exhibitors.

Key announcements at SICW 2019 include:

• Launch of the Operational Technology (OT) Cybersecurity Masterplan by CSA as part of the agency’s continuous efforts to enhance the security and resilience of Singapore’s critical sectors; improve cross-sector response to mitigate cyber threats in the OT environment; and strengthen partnerships with industry and stakeholders.

• Five-year Cybersecurity Standards Roadmap to be published in 2020. The Roadmap will be developed by the Coordinating Committee for Cybersecurity (CCCY), formed by CSA and Enterprise Singapore. The roadmap will address standards for building resilient infrastructure, creating a safer cyberspace and raise quality of cybersecurity products and services. It will include areas like advanced manufacturing, smart healthcare and smart mobility and autonomous vehicles.

• Establishment of the National Integrated Centre for Evaluation (NICE) by CSA and Nanyang Technological University. NICE is the one-stop centre to facilitate the testing and evaluation of cyber products, the research on advanced security evaluation techniques and conduct of training programmes for cyber professionals. This collaboration between CSA and NTU seeks to optimise resource utilisation and pool together industrial and research expertise. The centre is expected to start operations in 2020.

• The conclusion of the fourth ASEAN Ministerial Conference on Cybersecurity (AMCC). The AMCC was chaired by Mr S. Iswaran, Minister for Communications and Information and Minister-in-Charge of Cybersecurity. AMCC participants agreed to move forward on a formal cybersecurity coordination mechanism. In particular, the AMCC agreed to establish a working-level committee to develop a long-term regional action plan to ensure effective and practical implementation of the 11 voluntary, non-binding cyber norms recommended in the 2015 United Nations Group of Governmental Experts (UNGGE) Report.

• Launch of the ASEAN-Singapore Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence (ASCCE) to build a more secure and resilient cyberspace through capacity-building programmes for ASEAN senior policy and technical officials. The ASCCE will engage top cyber experts and trainers and collaborate with ASEAN Member States, ASEAN Dialogue Partners and other international partners in designing and delivering cybersecurity capacity building programmes. ASCCE’s multi-disciplinary training facility will be located in the city centre from April 2020 while the Cyber Range Facility at Temasek Polytechnic will be in full operation from October 2019.

• Joint publication of the IoT Security Landscape Study by Singapore and the Netherlands. The study identified IoT security challenges based on an analysis of the current technological and policy landscape, and proposed recommendations that countries can adopt to address the identified challenges, drive standards, and seed innovations to better secure IoT systems. The report is available for download at  CSA’s website.

• Inclusion of pre-approved cybersecurity solutions under the SMEs Go Digital programme. With this expansion, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) can receive funding support under the Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG) of up to 70% of the qualifying cost (e.g. subscription, license, and installation fees), to cover part of the cost of pre-approved cybersecurity products and services.

• Launch of the 2019 Cybersecurity Industry Call for Innovation by CSA and TNB Ventures to invite cybersecurity companies to develop innovative solutions in addressing specific cybersecurity challenges. This is done in collaboration with 10 participating organisations – CSA, Integrated Health Information Systems (IHIS), Jurong Town Corporation (JTC), Keppel Data Centre REIT, Ministry of Defence (MINDEF), Ministry of Health (MOH), PacificLight Power, Port of Singapore Authority (PSA), Senoko Energy and YTL PowerSeraya. Selected solutions that fulfil the eligibility criteria will be awarded with funding of up to S$1,000,000 under CSA’s Co-innovation and Development Proof-of-Concept Funding Scheme.

• Release of Findings of the second Government Bug Bounty Programme (BBP) by the Government Technology Agency (GovTech) and CSA. This second edition of the BBP covered nine Internet-facing government ICT systems and digital services with high user touchpoints. Thirty-one vulnerabilities were found and remediated. To complement this, GovTech has also launched a Vulnerability Disclosure Programme (VDP) on 1 October 2019. The VDP invites members of the public to identify and report the discovery of vulnerabilities found in all government internet-facing web-based and mobile applications used by citizens, business and public sector employees.

• Bilateral cooperation between Singapore and the United Kingdom on the Internet of Things (IoT). Singapore and the UK ratified a Joint Statement on our bilateral cooperation on IoT, which noted Singapore and the UK’s commitment to promote “security by default”, share initiatives/approaches/information, and adopt a multilateral approach for industry global standards and best practices. 

The fifth edition of SICW will be held in 2020.  

"The strong turnout at SICW 2019 shows that there is recognition that cybersecurity is an important issue today and that SICW has become a recognised platform to strengthen international networks, exchange best practices and build collaborations to further cybersecurity efforts. We are thankful for the support from all our partners and I look forward to advancing efforts to secure our common cyberspace together."

Mr David Koh
Chief Executive, Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA)

"The UK was delighted to play an active role in GovWare 2019 and SICW 2019. International partnerships across industry, academic and government, are key to a safe and secure cyber space. We were particularly pleased that Ciaran Martin, CEO of UK National Cyber Security Centre, joined us in Singapore and signed a joint statement of cooperation between our two nations, on the Internet of Things."

Ms Natalie Black
Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for Asia Pacific

"At FireEye, we are relentless when it comes to protecting our customers from the impact and consequences of cyber-attacks. Everyone has a shared responsibility when it comes to cyber defence and this year’s SICW underlines this importance, particularly as it pertains to cyber security capability building. To address this, FireEye is pleased to announce the expansion of our strategic partnership with CSA that aims to strengthen Singapore’s cyber security ecosystem through continued capability development and threat intelligence sharing. We are confident that our frontline intelligence and expertise, combined with innovative technology, provides the best means for companies and governments to combat sophisticated threat actors."

Mr Eric Hoh
President of APAC, FireEye

"Collaborative platforms such as the SICW and GovWare serve as critical channels for regional alliance, especially as Asia continues to be one of the hardest-hit regions when it comes to cyber threats and breaches. SICW 2019’s focus on partnerships is especially important in facilitating the exchange of knowledge between public and private sector players. Open exchange and cooperation serve to strengthen the cybersecurity posture of not only the country, but the entire region."

Mr Kevin O’Leary
Field Chief Security Officer, Asia Pacific, Palo Alto Networks

"SICW 2019’s theme is very apt and relevant in today’s cybersecurity landscape. As the saying goes, knowledge is power; at McAfee, we also advocate “Together is Power” - no one person, product, or organization can fight cybercrime alone. Partnerships are more important than ever, and everyone needs to work together to share and collaborate to stay ahead of our adversaries. It is imperative to deploy and integrate quickly and maximise your entire security infrastructure."

Mr Jonathan Tan
Managing Director – Asia, McAfee

"It was great to be part of SICW this week, to help emphasise the importance of international, regional and domestic cooperation in the effort to help to build trust and confidence for a safe and secure cyberspace."

Mr George Kurtz
CEO and co-founder, CrowdStrike.

"This is my first time at the SICW. It is a really exciting conference because it brings together everyone who are thinking about this problem, both the government officials and the industry. I think it is very difficult to get that kind of conversations to occur and the SICW has achieved this in a big way. I am very excited to be here and I have been really impressed by everything so far."

Mr Tim Hwang
Executive Director, The Cognitive Security Institute