Israel Strengthening Its Cyber Defenses

Damian Paletta

June 3, 2015

Israeli Cybersecurity Chief Focused on Future Threats

WASHINGTON—Israel’s top cybersecurity official said the country has launched a comprehensive strategy to prevent increasingly sophisticated computer attacks, warning that Iran and terrorist networks could greatly expand their capabilities in the next three to five years.

Eviatar Matania, the head of the Israeli National Cyber Bureau, said the Israeli government was working with universities, businesses, and government agencies to both attract cybersecurity investment and improve safeguards against attacks.

“I think the important thing is to better understand what is going to be important in the future,” Mr. Matania said in an interview. “Even those who are not there yet will be there in the coming years.”

Mr. Matania is in Washington meeting with business groups and policy makers as Israel tries to bolster coordination in the cybersecurity field and draw more investors. He held a meeting Tuesday morning at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and said investors have poured $500 million into Israeli cybersecurity startups in the past few years.

“We see ourselves as a global cyber incubator,” he said.

Israel’s cybersecurity structure is different than in the U.S., as much of the authority is consolidated into Mr. Matania’s bureau. In the U.S., there are a number of agencies, often at odds, trying to develop cybersecurity policy. The White House has tried to push for more uniformity, particularly after Sony Pictures Entertainmentwas hacked last year. However, the process is still ongoing.

Mr. Matania’s role in Israel is expanding, as the country is creating a new National Cybersecurity Authority next year, and he will play a lead role in the agency’s development. He reports directly to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, giving him a senior role in the government.

He said Israeli government offices and businesses faced constant cyberattacks, but he said many of the hackers operate on a global stage.

“You have some attack or campaign, the day after it could be in another country,” he said. “The crime organizations have the same [capabilities] here or there,” he said.

These have included attempted hacks against “critical infrastructure” in Israel, such as the electrical grid or water supply. Mr. Matania said none of these attacks so far had been successful, in part because Israel began overseeing cyberdefenses back in 2002 to ensure protection. Still, he said these entities were continually updating their defenses to prevent terror groups or crime syndicates from launching an attack that could paralyze the country.

“There is no total defense,” he said.

When asked about Iran, which is considered to have a sophisticated hacking network, Mr. Matania was careful not to disclose the country’s current capabilities, but said the country’s use of cyberattacks could become more dangerous.

“Talking about Iran and other terror organizations, the most important point is to be ready for the future threats,” he said. “The current capabilities of what nations or states or terror organizations do is not what you will see in three to five years.”

Though he works closely with military officials, his role is focused on defending against cyberattacks, not launching them. Asked about the secretive Stuxnet virus, which the Central Intelligence Agency and the Israeli government reportedly activated several years ago against Iranian nuclear sites, he declined to weigh in.

“I’m not the one to ask about it,” he said.