Taiwan is to host its Cyber Offensive and Defensive Exercise (CODE) in October, Minister of Digital Affairs Audrey Tang (唐鳳) said in an interview with the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) on Friday.
The drills, which were first held in 2019, are to be attended by friendly countries and information security organizations, Tang said.
A “red team,” or attacking team, would simulate attacks or probe for weaknesses in crucial infrastructure systems guarded by a “blue team,” or friendly team, she said.
Photo: Hsu Tzu-ling, Taipei Times
The drills are to familiarize participants with the strengths of allies’ cybersecurity measures and procedures to deal with information security incidents, she said.
The training would allow participants to quickly come to terms with a real-world incident, she added.
Twenty nations were represented at the 2021 CODE, Tang said, adding that the Ministry of Digital Affairs hopes to increase the number of government and civilian participants at October’s event.
The ministry would also invite other ministry-level agencies to participate, she said.
The ministry is to announce the number of participating teams once discussions with other countries and organizations are concluded, she said.
The attacking and defending teams would exchange their opinions and experiences of the event, she said.
In related news, the Financial Supervisory Commission said that many people have probably been affected by investment fraud advertising on the platforms of Google and Facebook parent Meta, despite the companies’ policies of only acting after a user has submitted a complaint.
Tang said that the ministry would propose an amendment to the Electronic Signatures Act (電子簽章法) to mandate that government agencies use digital signatures unless expressly excluded.
That precaution would prevent most scammers from deploying on Meta or Google in Taiwan and abroad, she said.
The ministry also hopes to use Domain Name Service Response Policy Zones to prevent scam ads, she added.
Asked about Shopee’s alleged refusal to cooperate after a slew of cybersecurity concerns, Tang said that proposed amendments to the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法) this year would give the ministry more measures to bring firms into line, including an increase in the maximum fine to NT$15 million (US$469,601), prohibiting data transmissions and restricting business operations.
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