Page 7 - SAMENA Trends - November-December 2022

SAMENA COUNCIL ACTIVITY SAMENA TRENDS

Cybersecurity Compliance Merits Incentives for Telecom Operators and
Preservation of Commercial Sensitivities, Says SAMENA Council

SAMENA Council, during the recently that “Given the role of Telecom Operators “Given the role of Telec-
held Global Cybersecurity Forum in at the nucleus of the digital ecosystem,
Riyadh, organized by the Saudi National Operators must unify and harmonize their om Operators at the
Cybersecurity Authority (NCA), voiced security requirements and conformance nucleus of the digital
the views of its Members and reiterated obligations to prevent fragmentation.
the need to commit to ensuring digital Isolated initiatives introduce complexity ecosystem, Operators
inclusion while balancing key aspects of but do not demonstrably improve security. must unify and har-
digitalization, including countering existing At the same time, regulatory and business
and emerging cyber vulnerabilities. Bocar expectations and priorities for Operators monize their security
BA, CEO and Board Member of the Council, and Regulators should be aligned. requirements and con-
in his Intervention “cybersecurity at the Cybersecurity measures and costs incurred
heart of the next-gen telcos”, building on in compliance to regulatory requirements formance obligations
the views of SAMENA Council’s community by the Private Sector be rewarded with to prevent fragmenta-
of telecom service providers and network incentives.” A longstanding desire of
technology providers, described how the Telecom Operators to evolve from being tion. Isolated initiatives
challenge of connecting 2.7 billion still- telecom companies to being technology introduce complexity
unconnected people around the world companies is coming to life in this age of
and the connectedness of billions of 5G. As a host of digital experiences are but do not demonstrably
devices and machines that are emerging increasingly made possible, the foundation improve security. At the
as a part of IoT and industrial IoT, for the next “G” is being created. On
require adaptation of the private-sector the road to universal connectivity and same time, regulatory
players within the digital ecosystem and new economic activity, Operators and and business expecta-
balancing digitalization with security of policymakers must align themselves, and
the cyberspace. Bocar BA emphasized framework of security processes, such as tions and priorities for
Operators and Regula-
tors should be aligned.
Cybersecurity measures

and costs incurred in
compliance to regulatory
requirements by the Pri-
vate Sector be rewarded

with incentives.”
Bocar BA, CEO & Board
Member of SAMENA Council

Network Equipment Security Assurance
Scheme (NESAS) and Security Assurance
Specifications (SCAS) should become the
Mobile networks regulations standards.
The complexity of the ecosystem, access
to the network, and numerous uses of the
communication infrastructure, inherently
make network and data security daunting
challenges. Moreover, Operators, given
cloudification rates across various sectors,
also need to focus on telco Cloud-native
developments and securing the Edge, to
help better strategize on network security,
privacy, and data security offerings. Mobile

7 NOVEMBER- DECEMBER 2022