ISLAMABAD: Pakistan earlier this week said it has set up state-of-the-art centers at top-notch universities to train professionals who can effectively counter the rising threat of cyber-security, in addition to extending regional and international cooperation to deal with the challenge.

“Cybersecurity is a rapidly-growing challenge with new, sophisticated, zero-day attacks costing economies billions per year and being fully aware of this challenge, we are doing our best to counter it,” Sabahuddin Qazi, Assistant Director at Air University, told Arab News.

The government set up a first-of-its-kind National Center for Cyber Security at the Air University in Islamabad, in April this year, with an aim to train the youth in cutting-edge technology.

“We are collaborating with numerous national and international organizations, too, to enhance our capacity and counter this transboundary challenge,” he said.

The university on Friday signed a document of understanding with Turkey’s Savunma Teknolojileri Muhendislik to enhance cooperation in the field of cyber-security and learn from each other’s experiences. “Cyberspace has emerged as a fifth warfare domain and there are greater threats to our national assets than ever before,” Qazi said.

He said that the scale of the problem, rapid technology advancement, and the technical nature of cyber-attacks has widened the cybersecurity skills gap. “There is a need for new initiatives that can not only produce skillful people in this area but make Pakistan self-sustainable in the area of cybersecurity, too,” he said.

The role of cybersecurity is growing in many businesses and applications, and it is also becoming vital for economic growth and national competitiveness, he said, adding that Pakistan is trying its best to “reduce the skill gap” by providing training to its youth along modern lines.

“Cybersecurity is not only a threat but also an opportunity as well, as it opens up a host of new prospects of jobs for the skilled youth,” he said.

McAfee, which provides cyber-security solutions for both businesses and consumers across the world, said that cybercrime is a growing industry in the world. It estimates that cybercrime cost the global economy as much as $600 billion in 2017. “New technologies and connections mean new threats to some countries and new opportunities to others,” it said.

Zafar Nawaz Jaspal, a defense and security analyst, said that cyber-security is becoming an emerging threat not only to developing countries like Pakistan but also for developed countries across the world due to rapid innovations in the field.

“Both state actors and non-state actors can exploit the cyber connectivity of the state,” he told Arab News, adding that “all public and private institutions are vulnerable to hackers …. even our security institutions have initiated numerous steps to tackle the challenge”.

Jaspal said that state institutions are trying to handle the challenge, and this can effectively be tackled only through “robust networking of relevant national and international institutions and by sharing the expertise and experiences with each other.”