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"We are alert for cyber attacks that may be suffered due to the war with Ukraine"

The Internet has many sides.

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"We are alert for cyber attacks that may be suffered due to the war with Ukraine"

The Internet has many sides. The Internet is a double-edged sword. It allows society to access virtually all information by clicking on a screen. However, we are more susceptible to the cybercrime and risks that the Internet conceals. This was evident in the early months of the pandemic when many people began typing from their homes, expanding the area for companies and administration. Experts expect cyberattacks will increase internationally now that the war in Ukraine is over. However, they are still focusing on the two countries at the moment.

The Vocento group in Spain and CIONET in Latin America have joined forces to host the forum 'Cybersecurity - the great challenge'.

Space, sponsored by Siemens and Zscaler, and which has been focused on the analysis of a sector with high added value and oriented towards internationalization, such as cybersecurity.

"We are witnessing a change in global scenario in which cybersecurity sector must offer solutions and guarantee security of users institutions and companies", stated Carme Artigas (Secretary of State for Digitization and Artificial Intelligence of Spain) during the opening of this forum. Artigas pointed out that attacks against businesses and administrations have increased since the outbreak of the pandemic.

According to Deloitte data, 94% of all national companies were affected by a serious incident in 2021. Cyberattacks rose by 26 percent on an annual basis. The secretary of state said that, "despite the risks," progressive digitization is a great opportunity to the Spanish economy. Defense must be a key to this effort. We must foster trust to support technological transformation. The transition will be positive. Artigas explained that there is no zero risk but we must continue to bet on a digital Spain.

The forum's two discussion tables were moderated by Yolanda Fouz (deputy director of ABC) and Juan Carlos Fouz (managing partner of CIONET). All speakers took seats at one of the tables. They also said that cybersecurity in the country is relatively good and that there are well-qualified experts in this area. They are not common, however.

"As a nation, we export talent abroad. Although we don't appear in the top universities' rankings, the opportunity to receive excellent cybersecurity training in Spain is unparalleled. Javier Ramos (rector of Rey Juan Carlos University, president of the Conference of Rectors of Madrid Universities) said that we are higher than the average of our environment. Our country is ranked fourth in the Global Cybersecurity Index 2020. However, this does not mean that everything is perfect.

Recent attacks on large Spanish companies and public administrations have made this clear, as evidenced by recent incidents involving the SEPE, Ministry of Labor, or Iberdrola. These two institutions were the first to be affected by the attack that can cause the most harm to a company's proper functioning: "ransomware", which is capable of paralyzing computers, stealing information, and that every year causes losses in the billions. euros. We are currently in an extremely aggressive position in the Network. With malicious programs, actors could enter. During the forum, Karen Gaines from Siemens AG's Global Head of Cyber Defense said that organized crime sees cyberspace as a new platform.

Many Western countries have begun to prepare for possible Russian attacks after the invasion of Ukraine. Javier Candau from the National Cryptologic Center's Cybersecurity Department, was questioned about the situation and warned that it is important to be prepared for anything. "Cyberattacks between these two countries have not yet spread across Europe. This could soon change. We are being alert. He noted that agencies have been advised to increase their security and that they are being very vigilant for any potential threats.

Both the public and private sector are more aware of the dangers presented by the internet. All speakers agreed that there are still many areas for improvement and that there is much work to do. In these times, the technologies we use every day are constantly evolving. This can be seen in the huge commitment to the development and use of new tools like the metaverse, the autonomous vehicle or Artificial Intelligence.

"We are moving toward new security perimeters. "We are anticipating how new attacks might develop in these environments," stated Enrique Avila (director of the Civil Guard's Center for Analysis and Foresight and director of The National Center of Excellence in Cybersecurity).

The importance of improving and increasing the training of cybersecurity professionals was also highlighted. Companies and institutions need to understand that cybersecurity investment is essential if they want to move forward with digital transformation. There is no budget. Although there are many talented people, there is a shortage of human resources. Digital transformation is not going away. "This should not be a cause for fear, but cybersecurity must continue to go ahead," said Esther Mateo, general manager of Security, Processes and Corporate Systems at ADIF.

It is important to keep improving security knowledge for all users. This will significantly reduce the chance of being a victim to a security incident. Experts praised the National Cybersecurity Institute's role in training and increasing awareness among Spaniards. The experts also highlighted the benefits that tools such as "gamification" - learning through gaming - can provide in this endeavor.

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