Microsoft advances cybersecurity investments in Asia-Pacific region

From left: Jacqueline Poh, Chief Executive Officer, Government Technology Agency (GovTech); Toni Townes -Whitley, Corporate Vice -President, Worldwide Public Sector, Microsoft; Minister K Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law; and Jessica Tan, Managing Director, Microsoft Singapore jointly launching the Microsoft Transparency Center and Cybersecurity Center in Singapore

Microsoft recently launched its first combined Transparency Center and Cybersecurity Center in Singapore, serving the Asia-Pacific region. 
The joint facility will for the first time bring together Microsoft capabilities in a single location in Asia-Pacific to deliver a holistic approach to serving the security needs of both the public and private sector and building a trusted and secure computing environment, a critical enabler for 
digital transformation. 
The Microsoft Transparency Center is a cornerstone of Microsoft’s long-standing Government Security Program (GSP), which offers participating government agencies the opportunity to review the source code of Microsoft products, access information on cybersecurity threats and vulnerabilities, and benefit from the expertise and insight of Microsoft security professionals. Nearly 40 countries and international organizations currently participate in the Microsoft GSP program with 10 participants from Asia.
Sri Lanka CERT CEO, Lal Dias attended the opening ceremony of the Transparency Center and commented, “Cybersecurity is a national concern for all countries and how we counteract it, is of paramount importance to all of us. The Microsoft Transparency Center in Singapore will function as a hub that can support countries like Sri Lanka to fight cybercrime.
 Although the cloud is a convenient platform and one of the best and most economical developments in recent times for businesses to store data, cyber security has to be a priority. I am delighted that Microsoft has taken this initiative to help countries in the region to develop this key requirement for functioning safely and effectively in this digital age.”
A group of Students from the University of Moratuwa also had the chance to visit the Transparency Centre in Singapore as part of their Overseas Outward Bound Training Program in their MBA in IT (Information Technology). They met with Keshav S. Dhakad, Regional Director - IP & Digital Crimes Unit (DCU) of Microsoft Asia who gave the students a detailed demonstration regarding a pressing concern in this digital 
age - cybercrime.
The Singapore Transparency Center is a convenient location for governments in the Asia-Pacific region and will be part of a global network that covers four regions, joining existing facilities in Redmond, Washington, for North America, and Brussels, Belgium, for Europe. In addition, more details of other new Microsoft Transparency Centers will be shared later in 2016, including the recently announced Transparency Center in 
Beijing, China.
Keshav Dhakad, Regional Director And Assistant General Counsel, Digital Crimes Unit (DCU), Microsoft Asia, said, “In the face of rising cyberattack sophistication, cybersecurity is mission-critical among C-suites and boardrooms. As governments and enterprises embrace digital transformation and strive for resilience,aholistic and agile security platform is ever more critical. This is where Microsoft’s unique threat intelligence innovations and trusted cloud ecosystem offer them powerful protection against security threats. Through strong public-private partnerships, we also empower them to investigate, disrupt and prosecute global cybercriminal networks.”
The Transparency Center and Cybersecurity Center will expand Microsoft’s public-private- partnerships in the Asia-Pacific region, while enabling and empowering enterprises to manage modern security threats effectively. This will build on the momentum in the last few years, where the Microsoft Digital Crimes Unit (DCU) has fostered various partnerships with public sector and enforcement agencies in the region. 
This includes strategic collaboration with Interpol in global malware botnet disruption operations and a PhotoDNA licensing collaboration to support Interpol’s efforts in preventing child sexual exploitation online, as well as cyber threat intelligence sharing partnerships with several Internet Service Providers in the region and government Computer Emergency Response Teams (CERTs). 
To support a comprehensive, cross-company and cross-industry approach to cybersecurity, Microsoft invests more than a billion dollars a year in security research, innovation 
and development.