A new agreement with Microsoft that will provide support and early warning supports against cyber crime has been welcomed by the director of the National Cyber Security Centre.
The agreement is on “a two-way sharing basis” that will provide the State with backup and solutions in the event of an attack and will give Microsoft information on how its system is being misused, Dr Richard Browne told RTÉ Radio’s Morning Ireland.
The 2021 cyberattack on the Health Service Executive (HSE) had been a “very serious crime” after which valuable lessons had been learned about what to avoid, he said. The Microsoft agreement was much broader than this and would cover criminal acts as well as the theft of data, Dr Browne said.
The agreement will provide the ability to “forewarn” and stop an incident becoming an issue, he said, adding it is a legally binding agreement that will preclude the sharing and selling of information.
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Microsoft had a corporate responsibility to ensure its system was not being misused, and protecting it was an evolving process, Dr Browne said.
The National Cyber Security Centre was growing at a significant level, he said, with five of 11 senior positions filled within the past year, an increase from one senior official.
In 2021, the HSE was targeted in the biggest cybercrime attack seen in the State, and thousands of procedures, appointments and scans scheduled for patients were cancelled as a result.
According to a later report, the opening of a malicious Microsoft Excel file attached to a phishing email led to the cyberattack that crippled the State’s health service.
