Canada will work with software firm BlackBerry to train cyber professionals from Malaysia and other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to improve their capabilities in defending against digital threats.
Under the $2.8 million investment, the Ontario-based cybersecurity company will collaborate with Toronto Metropolitan University’s Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst to equip the ASEAN region’s cyber experts with knowledge essential to building cyber resilience.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said cybersecurity is a shared challenge that all nations should cooperate to undertake. “With our government’s investment in Malaysia’s Cybersecurity Center of Excellence in collaboration with BlackBerry, Canada will share cyber expertise, train the cyber workforce across ASEAN countries, increase public-private sector collaboration, and strengthen our collective capacity to counter, deter and respond to cyber threats,” the premier said.
Indo-Pacific Expansion
BlackBerry has been investing in expanding its footprint in the Indo-Pacific in recent months, including opening the CCoE in March to offer its new BlackBerry Cybersecurity Curriculum.
BlackBerry CEO John Giamatteo, remarking on the new training program, expressed the company’s excitement about supporting the Trudeau government in helping allies and partners improve their cybersecurity. “In a growing digital economy, no matter how advanced your cybersecurity arsenal is, nations must have a well-trained cyber workforce to bolster their front lines of defense,” he said.
The deal would also expand cybersecurity courses offered by the CCoE in Cyberjaya to ensure everyone across Southeast Asia is prepared for cybersecurity roles and enable governments to have a workforce capable of addressing current and future threats.
Growing Cyber Incidents
A June report from the Canadian software company disclosed the growing number of novel malware used for cyberattack operations.
According to its latest Global Threat Intelligence Report, BlackBerry’s software identified and addressed 3.1 million cyberattacks in the three months leading up to March. The report named the United States the most frequently targeted nation, with 82 percent of the worldwide attacks aimed at U.S.-based companies.