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Scrape Timestamp (UTC): 2023-10-10 02:34:42.101
Source: https://www.theregister.com/2023/10/10/exercise_cyber_star_tests_singapore/
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Exercise Cyber Star tests Singapore response. How SANS is helping boost the island’s defenses against whole-of-nation cyber attacks. Sponsored The cyber attack which culminated in the personal details of 1.5m patients being compromised after hackers broke into the databases of SingHealth in 2018 provides a stark illustration of why organizations in Singapore need to remain vigilant and well protected against further incidents. Fostering the knowledge and expertise to do precisely that is the intention behind the Exercise Cyber Star program. Delivered by a partnership between the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA) and the SANS Institute, the week long annual event is designed to improve the island's crisis response capabilities and shape its readiness to ward off any future whole of nation cyber attack. The fifth edition (XCS 2023) kicked off on September 25. It brought together over 450 participants from 11 critical information infrastructure (CII) sectors - aviation, banking and finance, energy, government, healthcare, info-communications, land transport, maritime, media, security and emergency, and water – for a series of technical workshops and command post exercises. Ransomware, Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS), Industrial Control Systems (ICS) compromise and insider threats were just a few of the threats under discussion, followed by hands on sessions that reinforced classroom learning with rehearsals of operating procedures designed to foil those type of attacks. The event was rounded off by GRID NetWars, an interactive, hands on simulation of the sort of real world cyber attack which could be launched against any of those ICS systems in Singapore. Helping to prep the next generation of cyber security professionals was SANS APAC Technical Director, Delaney Ng. Delaney hosted a group of 20 young people from Singapore in collaboration with Cyber Youth Singapore (CYS), shared stories about his career and offering advice on the best way to win at GRID NetWars to fire their enthusiasm. You can find out more about how SANS Institute's training, table top exercises, cyber ranges and security awareness in the Asia Pacific region by contacting the company at this address - asiapacific@sans.org. Sponsored by SANS.
Daily Brief Summary
The Exercise Cyber Star program, conducted by a partnership between the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA) and the SANS Institute, was commenced on September 25. This week-long annual event aims at enhancing Singapore's response capabilities to cyber attacks in a whole-of-nation context.
The latest, fifth edition event attracted over 450 attendees from 11 critical information infrastructure sectors, including aviation, banking and finance, energy, government, healthcare, info-communications, land transport, maritime, media, security and emergency, and water.
The program covered a wide range of threats, including ransomware, Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS), Industrial Control Systems (ICS) compromise, and insider threats, followed by technical workshops and hands-on practice sessions.
The attendees participated in GRID NetWars, an interactive simulation of a real-world cyber attack, that could target any of the ICS systems in Singapore. The goal was to familiarize participants with the dynamics of various threat scenarios and optimal response actions.
SANS APAC Technical Director, Delaney Ng, also hosted a group of 20 young people in co-ordination with Cyber Youth Singapore (CYS), providing advice and insights about cyber security careers, and effective methods for counteracting cyber threats.
The program underscored the importance of extensive and continuous training, awareness campaigns, simulated exercises and developing the next generation of cyber security professionals in maintaining the resilience of critical infrastructures in the country against cyber attacks.