Sarawak will host the Asia Pacific Cybersecurity Conference 2023 from May 19 to 21, said Deputy State Secretary (Economic and Development Planning) Datu Dr Muhammad Abdullah Zaidel.

Scheduled to be held at Pullman Kuching, the threeday conference will see the participation of foreign experts as well as those from Malaysia.

“The Institute of Management Sarawak (Masa) and Sarawak Information Systems Sdn Bhd (SAINS) will be organising and hosting this event, which is also known as ASPEC 2023,” said Muhammad.

“We expect a total of 500 participants at this conference, including participants from countries such as Singapore, Cambodia, the Philippines and even Australia and the conference will also feature a keynote address by worldrenowned cybersecurity thought leader Mikko Hypponen.

“Hypponen will share his views and experience in that field,” he told a press conference at Wisma Bapa Malaysia here yesterday to announce the international event.

Commenting further, Muhammad, who is also Masa president, explained that the objective of the conference is to bring together leaders and practitioners in the cyber security industry.

He also mentioned that leaders and practitioners who will attend the conference will come from the Asia Pacific region and everyone is expected to discuss and exchange knowledge on the latest trends and best practices in cyber security during the conference.

“Cyber security is an interesting topic given priority by the Sarawak government. We are very interested in increasing the public’s knowledge about this sector, especially the local and regional population,” said Muhammad.

Meanwhile, SAINS chief executive officer Dr Anderson Tiong Ing Heng, who also attended the press conference, said the objective of the conference is to attract all cyber security experts to come to Sarawak so that all parties can benefit from the talents and experience of experts.

“We know that cyber security is one of the enablers to support the digital economy; so we feel this (conference) is very important,” said Tiong.

Apart from Muhammad and Tiong, the press conference was also attended by Daisy Sinclair, a cyber security expert.

Daisy, who is from Cyber8Lab (Australia), shared that a collaborative effort between Cyber8Lab (Australia) and CybExer Technology (Estonia) will feature the Asia Pacific Cyberattack Response Challenge 2023 which will be held simultaneously at the conference.

“This challenge will give teams from all over the Asia Pacific region the opportunity to showcase their skills and win exciting prizes.

“The challenge participants can also consist of various backgrounds such as university students, related industries, government agencies and so on,”

said Daisy, who is a Sarawak local.

The Asia Pacific Cyber Security Conference 2023 is expected to attract many participants from the region, including thought leaders and industry leaders in the field of cyber security. Its launching ceremony is scheduled to be officiated by the Sarawak Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg.

Through the conference, participants will also have the opportunity to network with peers, learn from experts in the field, and explore the latest cybersecurity products and services.

Registration is now open for interested parties on the official website www.aspec2023.com. More information about the conference can also be found on the website.