The joint facility will for the first time bring together Microsoft capabilities in a single location in Asia-Pacific to serve the security needs of both the public and private sector. Nearly 40 countries and international organisations currently participate in the programme with 10 participants from Asia-Pacific.
The Microsoft Transparency Center, co-located with the Cybersecurity Center, is a keystone of the tech giant’s long-standing Government Security Programme (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. It 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. Toni Townes-Whitley, Corporate Vice-President, Worldwide Public Sector, Microsoft Corporation said,
The opening of the Microsoft regional Transparency Center in Singapore to serve the wider Asia-Pacific region, advances our worldwide commitment to drive transparency, security and trust in digital technologies in the mobile-first and cloud-first world.
The Microsoft Cybersecurity Center in Singapore will enable enterprises and organisations to tap into a pool of resources such as security specialists and technologies at Microsoft. It aims to bring forth innovations and advancements by way of security platform, threat intelligence analytics, advanced threat protection, machine learning capabilities, security services and cloud security in a comprehensive way.
Jessica Tan, Managing Director, Microsoft Singapore said,
Beyond leveraging that knowledge to build trusted applications and products, we also have the responsibility to share the same intelligence with governments and organisations so that we can contribute towards a safer and more trusted cyber world for Singapore, the region, and beyond.
Both the Centers will broaden Microsoft’s public-private- partnerships in the Asia-Pacific region, also 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).
David Koh, Chief Executive, Cyber Security Agency of Singapore said,
We are happy that Microsoft has chosen Singapore to be its global partner in cybersecurity. Robust partnerships between the government and industry, such as through the Microsoft Transparency Center and Cybersecurity Center, will enable all of us to build trust and a safer cyberspace for everyone.
