Qatar Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA) hosted the Second Meeting of the Cybersecurity Working Group for ANS Providers in the Middle East (ACS WG/2), which was held on the sidelines of the Cybersecurity and Resilience Symposium, which comes under the supervision of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), and with the presence of the director of the ICAO Middle East Regional Office, along with representatives of member states in the region, and several heads of the Middle East Air Navigation Planning and Implementation Regional Group (MIDANPIRG).
The meeting discussed the cybersecurity action plan for the Middle East region, the most important cybersecurity incidents related to air navigation services, and the development of defences for future prevention. The meeting also touched on the need to promote cybersecurity awareness and build capacities in this field, develop a unified cybersecurity action plan for air navigation services in the MID region, provide a comprehensive understanding of the cyber vulnerabilities of air navigation systems, and develop policies, proactive approaches and measures to protect the ANS systems.
This is in addition to calling for intensifying efforts and encouraging co-operation between countries in the region with the ICAO, international and regional organisations with the aim of implementing the global action plan for civil aviation security. During the meeting, the discussions also included ways to enhance and develop the work mechanism through the ADCS portal, the platform concerned with recording cyber incidents and attacks, and the procedures required to achieve this.
