Former MI5 Chief: "Nobody Really Knows how to Deal with Cyber Espionage"
Dame Stella Rimington spoke at InfoSec 2017, one of the largest security conferences in the world, which was launched yesterday in London against the backdrop of the recent attacks in the Kingdom's capital. Among the exhibitors are some of Israel's leading cyber security companies
Ami Rojkes Dombe
| 07/06/2017
CyberBit's booth at InfoSec 2017
The International InfoSec 2017 Conference was opened in London this week. Last year’s InfoSec attracted 363 exhibiting companies, along with nearly 18,000 information security professionals representing industries ranging from finance and insurance to education, manufacturing and healthcare. Several Israeli information security companies are participating in the conference and exhibition, including CyberBit, Check Point, CyberArk, and others.
Dame Stella Rimington, the first female director general of the agency, spoke out this week (6 June) during a keynote speech at 2017's InfoSec Conference.
"We are facing a world where there's cyber-espionage now, which nobody really knows how to effectively deal with. We are facing a world of very complex communications which make it very difficult [for] our intelligence services to keep pace with changes taking place."
She indicated that the leaks from Edward Snowden, and the massive surveillance apparatus he exposed, firmly put the work of security and intelligence agencies under the spotlight.
"How much should we sacrifice [...] in order for the government to look after us?" she asked rhetorically. "That's the debate that's going on now. Of course, the line will move depending on the threats that the government is trying to protect us against."
Rimington's comments come after UK foreign secretary Boris Johnston said MI5 will likely be forced to answer tough questions about how the recent series of London attacks were able to take place and how the terrorist cell was able to slip through the cracks.
He told Sky News: "People are going to look at the front pages today and they're going to say 'how on earth could we have let this guy or possibly more through the net? That is a question that will need to be answered by MI5, by the police, as the investigation goes on."
[Source: International Business Times]
Dame Stella Rimington spoke at InfoSec 2017, one of the largest security conferences in the world, which was launched yesterday in London against the backdrop of the recent attacks in the Kingdom's capital. Among the exhibitors are some of Israel's leading cyber security companies
CyberBit's booth at InfoSec 2017
The International InfoSec 2017 Conference was opened in London this week. Last year’s InfoSec attracted 363 exhibiting companies, along with nearly 18,000 information security professionals representing industries ranging from finance and insurance to education, manufacturing and healthcare. Several Israeli information security companies are participating in the conference and exhibition, including CyberBit, Check Point, CyberArk, and others.
Dame Stella Rimington, the first female director general of the agency, spoke out this week (6 June) during a keynote speech at 2017's InfoSec Conference.
"We are facing a world where there's cyber-espionage now, which nobody really knows how to effectively deal with. We are facing a world of very complex communications which make it very difficult [for] our intelligence services to keep pace with changes taking place."
She indicated that the leaks from Edward Snowden, and the massive surveillance apparatus he exposed, firmly put the work of security and intelligence agencies under the spotlight.
"How much should we sacrifice [...] in order for the government to look after us?" she asked rhetorically. "That's the debate that's going on now. Of course, the line will move depending on the threats that the government is trying to protect us against."
Rimington's comments come after UK foreign secretary Boris Johnston said MI5 will likely be forced to answer tough questions about how the recent series of London attacks were able to take place and how the terrorist cell was able to slip through the cracks.
He told Sky News: "People are going to look at the front pages today and they're going to say 'how on earth could we have let this guy or possibly more through the net? That is a question that will need to be answered by MI5, by the police, as the investigation goes on."
[Source: International Business Times]
