WASHINGTON - Singtel will join forces with global cyber security firm FireEye in a $50 million campaign to tackle online attackers.
Their aim is to reduce the time taken to fight attacks to minutes instead of days and, in the process, help businesses protect their confidential data and financial assets.
The firms will set up special facilities called Advanced Security Operation Centres (Asocs) that will be able to detect malicious software or malware and take action before any attacks begin.
Up to 150 cyber-security professionals will be trained by FireEye experts to work in Asocs in Singapore and Australia as part of the five-year initiative.
Mr Bill Chang, SingTel's chief executive for group enterprise, said the first Asoc will open in Singapore early next year.
FireEye and SingTel will also offer security services to organisations in the Asia-Pacific, as well as in areas like Africa where the telco has a presence.
Mr Chang told The Straits Times yesterday: "FireEye is a global leader in cyber security. We've an extensive telecom network in the Asia-Pacific and a strong tech expertise. FireEye has three centres in the US and Europe collecting intelligence on cyber crime.
"This intelligence shared with what we're seeing in SingTel's networks will give us tremendous value in what's happening in real time in Singapore and the region. This will let us help customers deal with cyber attacks."
SingTel and FireEye will share the intelligence they collect by publishing a report every six months on the cyber threat landscape to raise awareness.
Mr Chang and FireEye chief executive David DeWalt were speaking to Singapore media yesterday via a conference call from Washington.
Mr DeWalt noted that a FireEye survey of more than 1,000 companies over the past six months showed that malware can reside in computer networks for an average of 229 days before being discovered.
"The time it takes from discovery to remediation is 32 days. We want to compress this time from days to minutes through the Asocs," he added.
Mr DeWalt said the usual methods of cyber defence are nearly 20 years old and rely on special programs to blacklist or block known malware. They work for a known set of viruses but in the past 20 months, a malware called advanced persistent threats (APT) has emerged that call for new defences.
Mr DeWalt said: "With APTs, you need to be pro-active because they can hide in computer networks for a while. Collective intelligence is a first step to fight attacks. For example, if we see from our US centre that there is a large cyber attack on a retail chain there, we take that intelligence and share it with the Asia-Pacific centre."
FireEye's intelligence comes from sensors it has installed in about 60 million computers in more than 100 countries.
Mr Chang added: "Cybercrime is a white hot area. Our initial discussions with customers show that there is great demand for this managed security service, which is the first of its kind in the region," he added.
The FireEye deal is SingTel's latest cyber-crime initiative.
It was reported last month that part of a $500 million investment will go towards building its capability in cyber security.
And last week, it signed a deal with cloud service provider Akamai to offer security services to help organisations keep their computer networks secure during attacks.
JOINT EXPERTISE
This intelligence shared with what we're seeing in SingTel's networks will give us tremendous value in what's happening in real time in Singapore and the region. This will let us help customers deal with cyber attacks. - Mr Bill Chang, SingTel's chief executive for group enterprise
This article was first published on October 8, 2014.
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