KUALA LUMPUR: Cybersecurity Malaysia and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) have the capacity to evaluate information communication technology systems and products to safeguard national security and sovereignty from threats of espionage, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.
Communications and Multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo (pix) said the evaluations are based on international standards, ranging from ISO/IEC 15408 Common Criteria (CC) to Evaluation Assessment Level 4 (EAL4) certification.
“At this stage, the source code is assessed by the laboratory to ensure compliance with the developed protection profile,” he said during oral question time in the house.
He was replying to a question from Hassan Abdul Karim (PH-Pasir Gudang) who wanted the minister to state what assurance there is that Malaysia’s sovereignty is secured from the threat of espionage when the country chooses to remain committed to using the technology of Huawei of China.
Gobind said Huawei products such as IP cameras, firewalls, network switches, routers and software have been evaluated and certified by international standards including ISO/IEC 15408 CC.
He said CyberSecurity can also handle vulnerability assessment and penetration tests on 5G devices and drones to ensure cybersecurity.
He also said that the government has developed the National Cryptography Policy for information security through the implementation of credible cryptographic infrastructure.
“This can overcome the problem of information leakage in cyberspace and the authenticity of information,” he said.
Gobind said CyberSecurity is developing a credible cryptographic algorithm portfolio named the National Trusted Cryptographic Algorithm List or MySEAL.
Hassan had also asked about security in terms of the 12 free surveillance drones worth RM80 million that Malaysia received from the United States.
Gobind said the Defence Ministry, through the Malaysian Armed Forces, has set up two committees, namely the Cyber Committee and the Crypto Committee, to inspect and curb the leakage of information or data gathered through the national defence assets purchased or received from another country.
“The MAF has verified these are safe from espionage,” he said.
Gobind also said that the Defence Ministry always reviews every piece of aid to be received from the United States via a memorandum of understanding or technical agreement which does not bind or undermine national security and official secrets. — Bernama
