Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I commend the Taoiseach's humility and I join him in saying that I am not an expert either. We do not need to know the detail. It is a very big issue. Years ago, when I was the Minister with responsibility for enterprise, McAfee came to Ireland and the McAfee view was that it was protecting against viruses. The managing director told me he thanked God that there were people out there creating viruses, given that he would not be in business otherwise. It was a very striking comment. Most of us would not have a clue about how people penetrate firewalls, and this is one of the great problems with modern technology. People who are interested have the wherewithal, capacity and knowledge. The problem is serious regarding energy systems and the operation of society in that a country could be closed down by a concentrated cyber attack. This is modern warfare. If a person does not like us or a country does not like what we are saying, we could get a wallop without even realising it. This is the sinister dimension. The Taoiseach said it had not been discussed among EU member states. I presume we should be open to international collaboration and discussions on it, given that we could learn from others whose security has been breached.

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