Setting the Standard

Innovation Through Collaboration

ITSCs Quarterly Newsletter - April 2015

Tackling the Local Talent Crunch Nurturing

the Next-Generation of Infocomm Security Talent
By Information Technology Standards Committee

In This Issue

New technology innovations are flourishing and continue to transform our everyday
lives, but its rapid development is not without its downside.
Organisations are becoming concerned with the shortage of high-skilled workers in
the technology sector. Last year, global technology leaders surveyed in the Harvey
Nash CIO Report claimed that the skills shortage was a significant problem. This
problem was the most severe since 2008 with Asia Pacific companies registering
the highest concern. 76 per cent of regional respondents said the skills shortage will
have a business impact, which is 16 per cent higher than the global average.
ICT has always been one of Singapores most significant service sectors, contributing
to $148.1 billion of Singapores revenue in 2013. To meet the needs of the future,
strong technical expertise and the ability to create innovative solutions for advanced
industries are needed. Delays in adopting cybersecurity capabilities could result in
a loss of US$3 trillion (S$3.75 trillion) in economic value by 2020 globally, according
to a World Economic Forum report.
The shortage of talent is feared to bring major issues for Singapore as it gears up to
be the worlds first Smart Nation. Firstly, when all devices become connected to the
Internet, the personal security of users will become vulnerable. This in turn results in
nations becoming more vulnerable to attackers, and looking at the recent incidents,
Singapore is clearly no exception.
Over the last year, Singapore has suffered several high-profile online attacks on
both government websites and corporate breaches. According to the Ministry of
Home Affairs, the number of cases of online crime in the first six months of 2014
more than tripled to 787, up from 187 in the same period in 2013.
Most recently, the website of Curtin Singapore was taken offline for a day by a hacker
group claiming to be from the Islamic State (ISIS). Although the universitys website
was restored the following day, the incident is another proof point of how advanced
cyberattacks has evolved over a short period of time, highlighting the urgency for
companies to take extra measures to mitigating the issue.

Cybersecurity in the IoT Age

By Information Technology Standards Committee

Tackling the Local Talent Crunch Nurturing the

Next-Generation of Infocomm Security Talent
By Information Technology Standards Committee

Security Threat Trends to Watch in 2015

The article originally appeared as Sophos whitepaper

Standards News
By Information Technology Standards Committee

Collaborative efforts to address the gap

In January this year, Republic Polytechnic signed a Memorandum of Understanding
with RSA, Palo Alto Networks and Ixia to strengthen its IT security courses and ensure
that its students are equipped with up-to-date and relevant industry-benchmarked
curriculum and internships.
Other partnerships in the education sector include the Singapore Institute of
Technology (SIT)s launch of the first undergraduate degree programme on information
security in the country, as well as the SingTel Cadet Scholarship Programme, which
was jointly developed with Singapore Polytechnic and Republic Polytechnic. As
part of the programme, young talent pursuing a Diploma in InfoComm Security
Management will be able to get a head start in the professional world with SingTels
first-ever diploma scholarship.
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