Protecting critical infrastructure has always been a prime objective of Qatar’s cyber security approach, HE the Minister of Information and Communications Technology Dr Hessa al-Jaber has said.
“We started early with the establishment of the region’s first CERT in 2008. The 2014 Qatar National Cyber Security Strategy was drafted through a multi-stakeholder committee and focuses on five key objectives: safeguarding national critical infrastructure, responding adequately to cyber incidents, establishing cyber legal and regulatory frameworks, fostering a culture of cyber security and developing national capabilities,” she said while participating in the fourth Global Conference on CyberSpace 2015 in The Hague, Netherlands, recently.
HE Dr al-Jaber, who represented Qatar at the key event, said in a policy statement: “Qatar has taken steps for transitioning from a traditional hydrocarbon-based economy to a digital economy. We have grown extremely fast and are constantly developing with high adoption rates of ICT. However, digital inter-connectedness is only beneficial if we can ensure our citizens and businesses are safe in the digital world that we are transitioning to.”
“In data privacy,” she said, “Qatar is an active player in promoting the right to privacy in the digital age. We support the United Nations’ efforts in this regard.”
HE the Minister emphasised that privacy was not just a technological challenge, but also a people-centric issue.
She said, “We must not forget the importance of education and awareness on its risks.”
Governments need to strike a balance between the citizens’ natural aspirations to protect their information while also enabling business to grow. Governments should reinforce the mechanisms that promote transparency and open data access.
With regard to social and economic growth, she said Qatar had created an environment that fostered ICT innovation through the development of proper legal framework and skills.
“Our cyber safety and digital literacy programme is embedded in the early stages of our education system, while also providing Internet access and ICT training to minority groups and the labour workforce. We have also issued various policies and regulations in line with international treaties and practices such as the 2014 cybercrime law, policies to ensure open data and transparency, and a law on personal information privacy protection will be released soon,” HE Dr al-Jaber noted.
The Internet, she said, must become more resilient across nations.
“We applaud the concerted efforts of the ITU and ICANN in this regard. International co-ordination should continue in helping bridging the digital divide between nations. Governments should harmonise their jurisdictions in cyberspace through UN initiatives,” she added.
HE the Minister also urged public authorities to work closely with private sectors and civil societies by engaging in open discussions, sharing information and developing public-private partnerships to enhance the protection of nations’ critical assets.
Governments, she said, should build a common understanding of threats through norms and standards. Establishing a common cyber risk information exchange framework between nations will help address the challenges of predictability of cyber threats.
“Qatar is supporting the UN reports highlighted by the Seoul framework, which can serve as a basis to develop such an information-sharing model,” she stressed.


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