Singapore (VNA) – ꦏThe National University of Singapore (NUS) and the telecom group Singtel has launched a joint cyber security laboratory, with the aim of protecting consumers against security threats, d♒ata leaks and other online attacks.

In the next five years, NUS, Singtel, and the National Research Foundation (NRF) will pump around 43 million SGD (30.9 million USD) into the lab. Speaking at the launching ceremony, Singaporean Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean, who is also NRF Chairman, said such public-private laboratory will aligns public research to industry needs, and accelerates innovations to market. The laboratory will focus on data, cloud computing and cyber security, among others. It will also serve as a research centre of over 100 Singaporean cyber security experts and train about 120 others over the next five years. Singtel CEO Bill Chang pointed out that many enterprises are constantly challenged by the increasingly sophisticated cyber threats, and the new lab will allow them to develop cyber security services more quickly to help companies. Previously, on October 10, the Singaporean Government announced a national strategy on cyber security which aims to strengthen the country’s capacity in the field. Singapore also plans to give more power to the Cyber Security Agency (CSA), which was formed in 2015, in controlling services related to cyber security in the private sector such as the financial payment system.-VNA