Vanguard Magazine

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Cyber Cadets in Exercise. Photo by Cpl. Eden Briand, IDF Spokesperson's Unit. Through its partnership with NATO and allies, Estonia took the lessons learned from the attack and made them core to the formation of the NATO Cooperative Cy- ber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCD COE), which now also hosts the world's largest annual cyber defence exercise. To firmly establish legislative and policy governance, the Tallinn Manual, a set of guidelines interpreting international law for cyberspace, was created and published in 2013. In 2017, the second edition was expanded to address attacks that fell below the threshold of armed conflict. To sustain its accomplishments in the global cyber arena, Estonia developed highly skilled resources as a critical success factor, similar to Israel's unique approach in utilizing military expertise. The Esto- nian government established the Cyber Defence Unit, a heavily vetted, anony- mous volunteer base of the country's lead- ing IT experts. Trained by the Ministry of Defence, members donated their time to what may be the world's first cyber defense reserves, engaging in incident responses to simulated and probable attack scenarios. While Israel and Estonia have both emerged as leaders in cyber, their respec- tive origins and paths were markedly unique. However, one common factor can be appreciated: when events or incidents strike the nation's collective conscious and values, amazing and transformative things can happen. In both cases, effective response was not just about technology, resources, skills, training, venture support or strategy. It was about all of those in con- cert–and apparently it helps to have a com- plicated (political) past. takeaways for Canada Where does that leave Canada? We are not exactly left in the wake since most would agree that Canada has a wealth of skills and policy measures in cybersecurity and in- novation. Still, Israel and Estonia impart some valuable lessons for Canada and oth- ers. Creating a balanced national strategy that spans cyber response and readiness for government and sectors bound by legislation and policy, collaboration with allies on international cyber law, incubat- ing and accelerating innovation through training, funding and commercialization all appear to be crucial. Also, leveraging existing professional- ized skills and military strength in cyber, as Israel and Estonia did, makes sense in the context of the defense and "war" models. Canada seems to have recognized this and appears to be moving in the same direction through programs such as the Military Veterans in Cyber Security by the Canadian Armed Forces and Veterans Af- fairs Canada. Providing military veterans an opportunity to put their skills, training and defense mindset into second careers in the cybersecurity industry, the program has successfully married government and private sector initiatives. There may also be merit in recognizing the cultures of vigilance fostered by Israel and Estonia–Israel's emerging from a se- ries of historical events and Estonia's as a response to a specific nation-wide attack. Having yet to experience our own tipping point, one that would propel us toward offensive planning and capabilities, may be Canada's Achilles heel in attaining ro- bust readiness. For now, possibly the most effective measure of our capabilities, rath- er than relying on performance indices, may be assessing intercepted and resolved attacks (shut-down of command and con- trol and wide-spread resolution of vulner- abilities), attribution and interdiction. In coming years, much of the cyber landscape, its players and capabilities will change, as will the threats and their deliv- ery. Responding to that constant ebb and flow will be essential for any nation–es- pecially Canada–in order to establish and then maintain overall cybersecurity exper- tise and resilience. The ability to prevent and detect threats with precision, forecast technological impacts and trends, respond with agility and continuous improvement, and invest heavily in government and pri- vate sector strategies and programs cannot be underestimated. Canada certainly has the grassroots el- ements to establish a comprehensive, re- newable and truly sustainable long-term national strategy–one that becomes part of our habitus. But only time will tell; it will be up to leadership to enlist the ex- perts to activate these core components. To that, Roni and I will certainly share a stage again in the coming years, and next time, I hope to give him a run for his money as I reveal how Canada trans- formed from a cybersecurity demagogue to a global heavy-hitter. I may even leave time for a Gangnam Style dance-along. References: 1. Israel Government website: http:// www.pmo.gov.il/English/PrimeMi- nistersOffice/DivisionsAndAuthori- ties/cyber/Pages/Background.aspx 2. The Economist: http://pages.eiu. c o m / r s / 7 5 3 - R I Q - 4 3 8 / i m a g e s / Technological_readiness_report.pdf 3. Organisation for Economic Co-oper- ation and Development http://www. oecd.org/ 4. Times of Israel: https://www.time- sofisrael.com/in-israel-cybersecurity- workers-earn-most-survey/ Valarie Findlay is an American Society for Evidenced-Based policing member and a research fellow for the police Foundation (USA) with two decades of senior-level ex- pertise in cybersecurity and policing initia- tives. She has worked extensively on fed- eral cyber initiatives and is a member of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of police eCrimes Cyber Council and AFCEA DC. She has a Masters in Sociology and a Masters in Terrorism Studies with her dissertation addressing the impacts of terrorism on law enforcement in Western Nations. www.vanguardcanada.com DECEMBER 2018/JANUARY 2019 25 cYBer

• Cover