Rome 08 June 2015
IT security is today a crucial point, in both the public and private sectors, for the development of any type of business that wants to steer clear of insidious intrusions that may affect data integrity and confidentiality. Though 80% of cyber-attacks currently originate from professional and organised crime, awareness of the risks related to the vulnerability of information is still low. Protecting this asset is therefore a priority for individual countries and organisations, especially when engaged in a process of digital transformation as, indeed, in the case of Italy.
In response to this these dangers, Finmeccanica - Selex ES and IBM will give life to a virtual “Competence Centre” for cyber security. This project will integrate the cyber capabilities of the two companies and act as a hub for cybercrime-fighting.
Services and solutions for both public and private organisations will be provided by the competence centre, helping them to protect IT infrastructures and intellectual property. Both of these are key factors in a country’s competitiveness and by protecting them, Selex ES and IBM will help ensure the quality and continuity of services provided to citizens and industries.
IBM will contribute the experience of its international ‘X-Force’ research group to the centre. X-Force has the expertise needed to detect and defend against emerging cyber threats. The recently launched ‘IBM X-Force Exchange’ threat sharing platform will allow the competence centre to facilitate close collaboration.
In turn, Selex ES will commit its expertise in the fields of threat prevention and the operational control of cyber security systems. This experience has been developed through the execution of projects for a number of high-profile customers including NATO and parts of the UK and Italian governments. The company has also built up its cyber security pedigree though developing its own Security Operations Centre and working with the Italian Supercomputer Centre, dedicated to open source intelligence.
Ultimately, IBM and Selex ES will share their understanding of security operation centres and cyber threat intelligence to anticipate threats and flag vulnerabilities and potential criminal activities before they occur.
Both companies will draw on experience gained via significant investments in cyber security, continuous research into the field and their expert cyber security staff who apply their skills daily on projects all over the world. The firms will also make use of proprietary technologies that are fundamental in mounting a rapid response to cyber-attacks.