KUCHING: The Sarawak Government, through the Sarawak Civil Service Digitalisation Unit (SCSDU), organised a briefing on the Cyber Security Act 2024 [Act 854] on Thursday to strengthen cybersecurity awareness and resilience across the State’s public sector.

The Cyber Security Act 2024 [Act 854], which came into force on 26 August 2024, establishes the legal framework to safeguard Malaysia’s cyberspace, enhance national cyber resilience, and protect critical information infrastructure.

The session was delivered by the National Cyber Security Agency (NACSA), providing participants with insights into the Act’s provisions, obligations, and its relevance to Sarawak’s ministries, departments, statutory bodies, local councils, and government-linked companies.

The programme was officiated by SCSDU Director, Grace Huong Siew Hung, and attended by Heads of Departments and representatives from across the Sarawak public sector.

In her remarks, Grace emphasised that cybersecurity is no longer just an IT matter, but a governance issue, an accountability issue, and above all, a matter of public trust. She stressed that every civil servant—regardless of role—has a responsibility to protect government data, systems, and services from evolving cyber threats.

She also highlighted that the Sarawak State Secretary’s Office has been formally appointed as the Sector Lead for all Sarawak Government agencies under the National Critical Information Infrastructure (NCII).

This appointment covers statutory bodies and government-linked companies, with all NCII-related matters required to go through the State Secretary’s Office.

Linking cybersecurity to the Post COVID-19 Development Strategy (PCDS) 2030 and the Sarawak Digital Economy Blueprint 2030, Grace noted that Sarawak’s digital ambitions—including achieving 100 percent online government services, modernising public service delivery, and advancing the digital economy—depend on robust cybersecurity foundations. “Cybersecurity is not only about defence; it is a strategic enabler of progress and public confidence,” she said.

The briefing concluded with a reminder that cybersecurity is a shared responsibility requiring vigilance, compliance, and continuous cooperation across all levels of the public sector to build a safer, trusted, and resilient digital government for Sarawak.-UKASnews