Dr. Eoin Byrne:

I thank the Chair. The Senator’s question on a security awareness programme on a national level is an incredibly important point. It is being used throughout Europe and internationally to raise awareness of cybersecurity. I think it is important that we tell a story of the impact of cybersecurity on society and start a national conversation around cybersecurity. That needs to be funded appropriately. The NCSC has a national cybersecurity awareness programme that runs in October, in line with the European cybersecurity month, which is run by the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity, ENISA.

There is also a role for Ireland to play within Europe for cybersecurity. Just this morning, there was a European Commission workshop on the establishment of the European cybersecurity competency centre, which is looking at supporting indigenous European small and medium-sized enterprises, SMEs, to develop, to innovate, to grow and to compete internationally, while also building Europe’s cybersecurity posture and strategies. There will be national cybersecurity co-ordination centres set up as part of this European competency centre, so Ireland would be setting up one of these. That needs to be set up within six months of the European competency centre, which is being set up in Bucharest in the coming months. There is a decision there on whether Ireland wants to lead the way in setting up its national co-ordination centre or whether it wants to wait and see what other organisations and member states are doing.

In relation to the junior certificate programme, there is already work being done by the NCSC in developing a junior cycle programme in cybersecurity. I think it is piloting that next September for transition year students. Definitely, as part of the leaving certificate curriculum, it would be important that the computer science module would have a cybersecurity element to it.

The apprenticeship programme is providing entry-level graduates to the sector. There is a number of conversion courses as well that have been taking people who have become unemployed-----