National Cybersecurity Authority Develops Skills of Over 10,000 Saudis Through CyberIC

The National Cybersecurity Academy trained about 6,000 beneficiaries representing more than 300 government agencies in 2023 (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The National Cybersecurity Academy trained about 6,000 beneficiaries representing more than 300 government agencies in 2023 (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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National Cybersecurity Authority Develops Skills of Over 10,000 Saudis Through CyberIC

The National Cybersecurity Academy trained about 6,000 beneficiaries representing more than 300 government agencies in 2023 (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The National Cybersecurity Academy trained about 6,000 beneficiaries representing more than 300 government agencies in 2023 (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The development of cybersecurity is one of the strategic pillars of the National Cybersecurity Authority (NCA) in Saudi Arabia to stimulate the growth of the sector, encourage innovation, support entrepreneurship and investment, raise the proportion of local content in it, and build specialized national cadres to meet the national needs.

It also aims to contribute to strengthening the cybersecurity sector in Saudi Arabia and exploit promising opportunities that abound to achieve sustainable development and access to safe and reliable cyberspace.

NCA is the government entity in charge of cybersecurity in Saudi Arabia and serves as the national authority on its affairs.

It has regulatory and operational functions related to cybersecurity and works closely with public and private entities to improve the country's cybersecurity posture to safeguard its vital interests, national security, critical infrastructures, high-priority sectors, government services, and activities.

It is also concerned with stimulating the growth of the cybersecurity sector in Saudi Arabia and encouraging innovation and investment.

The Authority's pavilion at World Defense Show 2024 highlights the most prominent efforts and initiatives implemented to develop and build national capabilities specialized in cybersecurity, raise the level of cyber readiness among federal entities, and create a competitive environment that attracts local and global investment to the market in Saudi Arabia.

The Authority launched a group of strategic initiatives as part of the CyberIC program to develop the sector, contributing to the localization of cybersecurity technologies and training content, building specialized national capabilities, and supporting research and innovation programs.

The initiatives also aim to develop skills and knowledge for more than 10,000 Saudi men and women.

The first phase of the CyberIC program includes numerous initiatives, most notably the training of employees of national authorities, accelerating cybersecurity activities to stimulate the sector, and encouraging the development of national cybersecurity products, services, and solutions.

The cybersecurity accelerator is one of the main enablers in localizing its technologies by supporting more than 40 emerging companies and motivating entrepreneurs by establishing more than 20 local start-ups that provide solutions to cyber challenges.

The Authority also launched the CyberIC Innovation Program, in partnership with NEOM, to contribute to the growth of Saudi Arabia's cybersecurity sector, encouraging innovation and fostering investment.

The CyberIC Innovation Program aims to support the development of winning ideas and turn them into viable commercial products – thereby fostering localized innovative cybersecurity solutions, promoting investment in cybersecurity, and boosting the cybersecurity sector in Saudi Arabia.

It plays a critical role in nurturing local talent, creating a solid local cybersecurity company, and enabling cybersecurity entrepreneurs in a thriving environment that fosters innovation.

The Authority also implements a CyberPro program to train and qualify government cybersecurity employees. It aims to develop their capabilities and enhance scientific and practical skills.

During 2023, the National Cybersecurity Academy trained over 6,000 personnel representing more than 300 government agencies and contributed to developing the leadership capabilities of 160 cybersecurity officials within the Cybersecurity Leaders program.

The Authority issued the Saudi Cybersecurity Higher Education Framework and the Saudi Cybersecurity Workforce Framework (SCyWF) to achieve the academic quality of higher education programs and ensure that higher education outcomes are aligned with national needs.

The SCyWF framework facilitates creating, updating, and standardizing job descriptions in cybersecurity within national entities, as each role has a job description that includes a description of the tasks, knowledge, skills, and abilities required for each job role.

The Authority also depends on the cyber awareness of national authorities' employees and all society's age groups to establish a high cyberculture that enhances the values of preserving national security.

In 2022, the Authority launched the National Cybersecurity Awareness Program (Amen), an extension of its strategic initiatives to raise cybersecurity awareness within society.



Ireland and UK Clean up after Unprecedented Storm Brings Record Winds and Damage

 A man takes a picture of a fallen tree, after Storm Éowyn hits, in Phoenix Park, Dublin, Ireland, January 24, 2025. (Reuters)
A man takes a picture of a fallen tree, after Storm Éowyn hits, in Phoenix Park, Dublin, Ireland, January 24, 2025. (Reuters)
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Ireland and UK Clean up after Unprecedented Storm Brings Record Winds and Damage

 A man takes a picture of a fallen tree, after Storm Éowyn hits, in Phoenix Park, Dublin, Ireland, January 24, 2025. (Reuters)
A man takes a picture of a fallen tree, after Storm Éowyn hits, in Phoenix Park, Dublin, Ireland, January 24, 2025. (Reuters)

Emergency crews began cleaning up Saturday after a storm bearing record-breaking winds left at least one person dead and more than a million without power across the island of Ireland and Scotland.

Work was underway to remove hundreds of trees blocking roads and railway lines in the wake of the system, named Storm Éowyn (pronounced AY-oh-win) by weather authorities.

In Ireland, wind snapped telephone poles, ripped apart a Dublin ice rink and even toppled a giant wind turbine. A wind gust of 114 mph (183 kph) was recorded on the west coast, breaking a record set in 1945.

A man died after a tree fell on his car in County Donegal in northwest Ireland, local police said. They named the victim as 20-year-old Kacper Dudek.

Hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in the Republic of Ireland, neighboring Northern Ireland and Scotland, remained without electricity on Saturday,

“The destruction caused by some of the strongest winds on record has been unprecedented,” said Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin, adding that “every effort is being made to get high voltage transmission lines up and running, homes reconnected and water supplies secured.”

Schools were closed and trains, ferries and more than 1,100 flights were canceled Friday in the Republic of Ireland and the UK City centers in Dublin, Belfast and Glasgow were eerily quiet as people heeded government advice to stay home.

Part of the storm’s energy originated with the system that brought historic snowfall along the Gulf Coast of the US, said Jason Nicholls, lead international forecaster at the private weather company AccuWeather.

Éowyn became a bomb cyclone, which happens when a storm’s pressure drops 24 millibars in 24 hours and strengthens rapidly. The storm was so powerful that meteorologists say a sting jet developed, meaning Éowyn tapped into exceptionally strong winds higher up in the atmosphere.

A sting jet is a narrow area of winds moving 100 mph (161 kph) or faster that is drawn down to the Earth’s surface from the mid-troposphere and lasts for a few hours.

Scientists say pinpointing the exact influence of climate change on a storm is challenging, but all storms are happening in an atmosphere that is warming abnormally fast due to human-released pollutants like carbon dioxide and methane.

“As the climate gets warmer, we can expect these storms to become even more intense, with greater damage,” said Hayley Fowler, a professor of climate change impacts at Newcastle University.