Singtel, SoftBank,Etisalat and Telefónica join forces on cybersecurity
Singtel, SoftBank, Etisalat and Telefónica have joined forces in a global telco security alliance.
The companies collectively boast over 1.2 billion customers across 60 countries. The alliance’s founding members oversee 22 security operation centers, which employ more than 6,000 cybersecurity professionals.
The purpose of the group is to provide companies with a comprehensive portfolio of cybersecurity services. It seeks to develop a roadmap to secure IoT devices as well as technologies leveraging predictive analytics and machine learning. Members will share operational intelligence with each other, and explore joint investments in security products and services, SOCs, platforms, start-ups and R&D.
“The Security Alliance will help all its members to deliver disruptive innovation to secure our customers’ digital lives,” said Pedro Pablo Pérez, VP of security at Telefónica. “For Telefónica, it’s a major step ahead in complementing our ability to develop as an intelligent Managed Security Service Provider and to continue to deliver outstanding growth.”
The alliance comes at a time of increasingly sophisticated cyber attacks and data breaches. Last May, for example, cyber criminals seized control of NHS hospitals and GP practices with the malicious malware “WannaCry,” which infected approximately 300,000 computers. And in September, Equifax reported the personal information of potentially 143 million U.S. citizens had been accessed by hackers between mid-May and July.
“We need swift and coordinated global responses to defend enterprises that operate across transnational borders as cyber threats are increasing in frequency, scale and sophistication,” said Art Wong, Chief Executive Officer of Global Cyber Security at Singtel. “Singtel and its US-based subsidiary Trustwave are both well-established security leaders across the Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Americas. The group’s resources, combined with those of its alliance partners, will provide a robust cyber security platform to protect our global customers, allowing them to thrive in the digital economy.”
