Qatar's Cybersecurity Strategies Ensure Secure Cyber Environment

(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Deepak John | The Peninsula

Doha: Qatar's cybersecurity strategies have brought forth the formation of a secure environment for digital transformation, investment and growth. The country is establishing itself as a global leader in cybersecurity activities with a strong regulatory framework and cybersecurity policy landscape designed to ensure robust national digital security.

Mohammed Al Mannai, Director of National cyber Programme Delivery Department at the National Cyber Security Agency (NCSA) talking to Qatar TV highlighted the importance of the agency's proactive work to raise awareness about data protection and privacy by providing principles, guidance, and tools to assist institutions in facing potential risks.

“Cybersecurity is securing your digital data online. To secure data on the Internet requires some basics, for example using a strong password and a secured device. Also, the Internet connection network being used needs to be a secured network,” Al Mannai said.

Explaining the mission of NCSA, Al Mannai noted that the mission is to secure the cyberspace for Qatar. The agency affirms its commitment to pursue diligent work through projects and programmes that aim to enhance cybersecurity.

It provides a secure cyber environment in accordance with the latest systems and international best practices in such field in order to achieve building and developing information and communications technology, digital transformation, providing valuable solutions to meet cyber challenges.

To help the community navigate the online world safely, cybersecurity agency recently posted on its social media platform the best practices to be followed when using the Internet and how to be protected while using it.“Be aware and do not share your personal or banking data with unknown numbers,” the post stated.

“In case an organisation is hacked it requires notifying NCSA and we have a specialised security team called 'The Response Team'. The team responds to such incidents and ensures containment of the breach within the organisation. They analyse the incident to understand the root cause and identify any specific vulnerabilities to be addressed to prevent such breaches in the future,” Al Mannai said.

In an earlier post the agency advised to promptly update both personal and enterprise account passwords to strengthen security measures, emphasising the importance of regular password changes for heightened protection.

It also shared important tips when updating password which include enabling two-factor authentication, use different passwords for each account, include a mix of numbers and symbols in passwords, choosing passwords that contain more than 12 characters and avoiding reusing previous passwords.

Qatar's commitment to enhancing its cybersecurity and digital space has established a resilient cyber ecosystem with compelling market opportunities for foreign investors. With a budget of over $1 and the fastest growth in cybersecurity spending in the Middle East, Qatar provides significant investment opportunities for cybersecurity companies.

Combined with skilled talent and policy frameworks, Qatar's cybersecurity capabilities have been enhanced with the establishment of effective infrastructure and technologies. Cloud-enabled technologies that are offered in data centres play a crucial role in helping organisations defend against modern cyber threats while meeting regulatory requirements.

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