‘Internet security has become national security concern’
By Ali Imran

ISLAMABAD—Chief of Military Information Technology (IT) Operations Lt. General Malik Arif Hayat on Thursday said in this era of information explosion the Internet security has become a matter of national security.
He said that common people, businesses as well as defence is becoming increasingly dependent on IT and that there is a need to apprise all stakeholders that technology and IT cannot provide solutions without proper security. Speaking at a seminar, "Information Security 2006, Challenge for Pakistan" held here at a local hotel, the Director General C4I Directorate, GHQ, Lt. Gen. Malik Arif Hayat said that traditional weapons of national power military, economy, diplomacy are glued together by information and that wrong information could lead to disaster.
"Information is being increasingly used to shape the perceptions of allies and adversaries," he said adding that it a 365 days a year war because information is a powerful weapon which can shape the will of a society. Never were the diplomatic, military or economic means so successful as the information but yet Internet security takes a back seat while planning or building network solutions, he said. Hayat proposed that the stakeholders should stress on integrated frame networks while designing a set-up.
Stressing on his point, he said that economy as well as defence could be undermined due to vulnerabilities and flaws in the network/system. "People in general have a tendency to consider security after being hit by hackers that must be changed," he said. Managing Director Pakistan Software Export Board, Yousuf Hussain said that Pakistan has witnessed a growth of 300 percent in IT during last three years. He said that everything and everyone is getting dependent on information therefore it should be correct. "To keep it up to date and integrated proper security arrangements are necessary," he said.
He informed that Pakistan last year exported software to the tune of $ 1 billion while the size of the industry remained $ 2 billion. Now the board has orchestrated a 4-year roadmap to boost the industry size to USD 10 billion. Ten strategic thrust areas have been identified - from IT Parks to venture capital fields, he said. Director General Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Tariq Pervez said that along with economic progress computers are replacing manual procedures that have exposed that critical data to a lot of vulnerabilities. The unscrupulous elements are carefully watching developments and exploiting the situation. He said that hacking, tracking and attackers are a challenge for FIA. He said that trans-border electronic services are equally available to people as well as criminals.