Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is a very important question. My colleague the Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications, Deputy Ryan, retains overall responsibility for cybersecurity at a national level but, of course, the response to cyber threats is a whole-of-government challenge with important inputs in the security domain from An Garda Síochána and the Defence Forces.

As we have seen with the cyberattack on the HSE, cybersecurity is an issue about which we all need to be very concerned. For national security reasons, it would not be appropriate for me to comment on the nature of the HSE cyberattack at this time, but it does illustrate how vital it is we take cybersecurity very seriously.

Ireland ranks among the leading EU member states in terms of the uptake and use of digital technologies. These technologies play a central role in supporting our economic and social life. Ireland's geographic position, our open economy and our EU membership mean we now host a large amount of data and economic activity. Covid-19 also means people are relying on technology more than ever to stay connected. The development of the information and communications technology that supports all this activity introduces a new set of complex and evolving risks. Infrastructure of any kind attached to the Internet is vulnerable to threats from anywhere on in the world.

Disruption to our digital assets and critical infrastructure brings significant economic costs and undermines trust and confidence in them. Threats emanate from individuals and from nation states and can have national security implications. It is vital we work closely with our partners in the European Union on cybersecurity issues, and I welcome the proposal made last week by the European Commission to build a new joint cyber unit to tackle the rising number of serious cyber incidents impacting public services, businesses and the lives of citizens across the EU. The proposed joint cyber unit represents an opportunity to bring together cybersecurity communities, including civilian, law enforcement, diplomatic and cyber defence communities. The Government will be examining this proposal in depth since, while Ireland welcomes it, it represents a potentially very substantial requirement for additional resourcing, both in terms of financial resources and skill sets, on behalf of member states.

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