SINGAPORE \u2013 To strengthen the resilience of Singapore\u2019s critical information infrastructure (CII) against advanced persistent threats (APTs), Mindef will organise its cyber defenders into teams and deploy them to key sectors.<\/p>\n
Recognising that many national servicemen (NSmen) <\/p>\n have skills in the fast-changing cyber and tech domains<\/p>\n <\/a> from their private sector careers, Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing said the Digital and Intelligence Service (DIS) will organise such NSmen into sectoral cyber defence teams (SCDTs) to help tackle threats to Singapore\u2019s CII.<\/p>\n Expanding on this, Senior Minister of State for Defence\u00a0Zaqy Mohamad\u00a0said at the debate on MINDEF\u2019s budget on Feb 27 that SCDTs will be deployed from June, strengthening capabilities and complementing the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore in defending the Republic\u2019s CII, such as the vital sectors of telecommunications, power and transport.<\/p>\n Mindef<\/span> said the SCDTs will comprise both regulars and NSmen, and will shift the Singapore Armed Forces\u2019 (SAF) posture from \u201creactive incident response towards a coordinated and proactive strategy\u201d.<\/p>\n The new teams will come under DIS\u2019 Defence Cyber Command Cyber Protection Group, and will help build up sector-specific cybersecurity communities which can share best practices. This move will also ensure that NSmen with the relevant cyber skill sets are meaningfully deployed in key operational roles, the ministry added.<\/p>\n The ministry also announced on Feb 27 that the first phase of SAF\u2019s digital range will be operational in 2026, with an upgraded Cyber Defence Test and Experimentation Centre (CyTEC) that is able to simulate sophisticated cyber defence scenarios using artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n Akin to how a live-firing range hones soldiers\u2019 warfighting capabilities, the digital range is meant to be a training environment for cyber defenders. <\/p>\n Mindef <\/span>said that the digital range will initially build on the existing CyTEC building. It will facilitate more complex collaborations with government partners, CII operators and commercial companies, and also enable SAF to connect remotely with overseas partners for multilateral cyberdefence exercises.<\/p>\n In his speech, Mr Chan noted that cyber and digital tools are increasingly preferred by state and non-state actors to exert pressure just short of full-scale war.<\/p>\n As a deeply digitally integrated country, Singapore has a larger surface area of attack as its systems are tightly coupled. Such integration also means that the lines between civilian and military targets are blurred, and the city-state is no stranger to such tactics being used against it, he added.<\/p>\n The DIS will thus better organise NSmen with relevant cyber expertise into SCDTs aligned to the country\u2019s CII sectors, said Mr Chan.<\/p>\n Speaking to the media on Feb 24, the Cyber Protection Group commander, Senior Lieutenant Colonel\u00a0(SLTC) Benjamin\u00a0Lim, said the formation of SCDTs means SAF is shifting from episodic contributions to defending critical sectors, to a more organised and persistent effort.<\/p>\n This is being done to guard against APT groups which are themselves organised, sophisticated and persistent, he added. \u201cIf successful, these threat actors could access sensitive information for espionage purposes and also potentially disrupt our essential services that our citizens depend on on a daily basis.\u201d<\/p>\n