Singapore is home to the new physical facility of the Asean Regional Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT).
Co-located at the ASEAN-Singapore Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence (ASCCE) in Singapore, the new facility aims to significantly move forward information sharing among Asean Member States (AMS) on cyber threats and attacks and online scams.
It will serve as a dedicated space for in-person activities – including cyber exercises and CERT-CERT cyber capacity building programmes – to foster cohesive collaboration among AMS.
In February 2024, the AMS agreed for Singapore to fund and host the physical facility of the Asean Regional CERT for up to 10 years. The operationalisation of the Asean Regional CERT will amount to US$10.1 million ($13.2 million) for 10 years which will be funded by Singapore as the current Chair of the ASEAN Digital Ministers’ Meeting.
Next steps
The Asean Regional CERT Taskforce will guide the efforts of the ASEAN Regional CERT. The taskforce is led by a rotating overall coordinator based on the AMS’ ASEAN Network Security Action Council chairmanship term.
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Malaysia chaired the inaugural Asean Regional CERT Taskforce meeting yesterday in Singapore. The taskforce discussed the next steps to move forward on implementing the eight functions of the Asean Regional CERT, which are:
- Facilitate coordination and information sharing between AMS National CERTs.
- Develop and maintain an Asean Point of Contact network of cybersecurity experts and organisations.
- Host Asean cybersecurity conferences/meetings, and trainings for AMS National CERTs.
- Facilitate and conduct regional cybersecurity exercises.
- Partner with other international and regional organisations in support of Asean cybersecurity interests and objectives.
- Develop partnerships with industry and academia.
- Support AMS National CERT capacity-building and exchange of best practices.
- Support the conduct of cybersecurity awareness campaigns in coordination with other Asean Sectoral Bodies related to cybersecurity and the Asean Cyber-Coordinating Committee.
“Asean countries are united in a common purpose: to build a trusted digital ecosystem that benefits all of us. Through joint initiatives, shared knowledge, and collaborative frameworks, we are strengthening regional cybersecurity and data governance. This isn’t just a commitment on paper; it's a tangible, collective effort to protect our citizens, secure our infrastructure, and promote innovation,” says YB Gobind Singh Deo, Malaysia’s Minister of Digital. He was speaking at the 9th ASEAN Ministerial Conference on Cybersecurity (AMCC) as part of the Singapore International Cyber Week 2024.
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Norms Implementation Checklist finalised
A rules-based international order in cyberspace is crucial for ensuring an open, secure, stable, and interoperable cyberspace for Asean to reap socio-economic benefits of the digital economy.
Recognising this, the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore and the United Nations (UN) Office for Disarmament Affairs launched the Norms Implementation Checklist (NIC) initiative under the auspices of the UN-Singapore Cyber Programme in 2020.
The NIC comprises a set of actions that all states can consider and follow to implement the UN norms of responsible state behaviour in cyberspace. The actionable items for each norm are separated into five pillars: policy, operation, technical, legal, and diplomacy. The NIC further outlines the suggested capacity-building activities for states to consider undertaking to support them in implementing the norms.
Singapore is the co-lead of the norms implementation efforts in Asean. In partnership with the National Cyber Security Agency of Malaysia and with support from the UN Institute for Disarmament Research, Singapore organised a workshop in August 2024 for AMS to finalise the NIC.
"Cyber threats are borderless. Thus, international cooperation is essential in our efforts to build a trusted cyberspace. This explains why Singapore actively collaborates with other countries on various digital trust and security issues, from cybercrime to cybersecurity threats. We will do our part to contribute to a multilateral, rules-based cyberspace we can trust, and our citizens can benefit from," says Singapore's Minister for Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo, at the same event.
