In an effort to strengthen cyber security, the IT Ministry has taken a major initiative: it has issued a notification for the formation of a ‘Computer Emergency Response Team’.
The purpose of the team is to prevent possible cyber security attacks on the data of Pakistani institutions, and take immediate action against any such attacks, said caretaker IT Minister Dr Umar Saif.
The teams will be responsible for 24-hour surveillance, even during holidays, of the Pakistani cyberspace, and ensure its protection, the minister further said.
The establishment of the National Security Operation Center will also come into effect under the same rules, he revealed.
He further said the ministry will issue a notification for the establishment of the CERT Council in the next few days, while it issued a gazette notification for the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) Rules 2023.
Under the rules, computer emergency response teams will be formed at the national and sectoral levels, according to Dr Saif.
The national CERT, established from the Ministry of IT funds, will provide communication and timely support to various CERT teams, the minister reported. He added that the purpose of the council is to provide advisory services and supervision and monitoring of rational support since the implementation of the rules to all the CERT teams.
The CERT Council will include the IT secretary as its Chairman, as well as representatives of the ministries of defence, foreign affairs, interior and Cabinet Division as its members, Dr Saif said.
The members will also include representatives from the National Security Division, the telecom sector, industry, academia, and civil society.
