National Cyber Emergency will be called when there are 'threats to life'
The Government published Ireland’s National Cyber Emergency Plan (NCEP) on Tuesday
A National Cyber Emergency will be declared by the Government in instances which cause or threaten to cause death, serious injury or serious damage to property or the economy, a new plan has laid out.
The Government published Ireland’s National Cyber Emergency Plan (NCEP) on Tuesday following engagement throughout both the public and private sectors and two sector-specific emergency exercises in 2022 and 2023.
It also reflected on the cyberattack that crippled the HSE in 2021 and brought the health service to its knees for several weeks. It later transpired that the attack was carried out by a Russian Conti gang.
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The NCEP outlines the structures for coordinating a "whole of Government" approach to prepare for and respond to a cyber emergency.
The plan will use a traffic light system used to categorise cyber incidents.
The most severe incidents will be categorised as a 'National Cyber Emergency'.
A cyber emergency is defined as "any cyber incident which causes or threatens to cause death or serious injury or damage to property, the environment or the economy or significant incidents impacting two or more critical sectors".
The incident will require the activation of the National Emergency Coordination Group (NECG Cyber) to ensure an effective coordinated response for containment, mitigation and recovery.
The second most serious attack will be categorised as a "highly significant incident". This will be declared when a cyber attack has a serious impact on central government, essential services, on a large proportion of the population or on the economy.
The plan calls for the organisation to be in a "permanent mode" of "situational awareness". A heightened risk of a cyber emergency will place an organisation in "warning mode", while "full activation mode" will be activated if an incident occurs that meets the threshold of a national cyber emergency.
Richard Browne, Director of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), stated that the plan establishes "architecture for coordinating the Government response in accordance with Irish and European legislation and policy".
"Responding to cyber security emergencies effectively at a national level is a complex undertaking due to the very wide range of potential incidents, and the diverse nature, extent and consequences associated with these," he said.
"The publication of the plan ensures seamless coordination with the national approach to emergency management, as established in the 'Strategic Emergency Management (SEM) National Structures and Framework'.
"This framework is designed to enhance the protection, support, and welfare of the public in times of emergency by ensuring that fit-for-purpose national structures and procedures are in place to deal with a broad spectrum of emergencies, whether of internal or external origin."
Mr Browne later told RTÉ’s News at One that 90 per cent of all incidents are "failures" where there is "no bad guy involved".
However, he said the NCSC sees a "lot" of espionage and less "disruption and sabotage".
He said: "We're talking about the organised theft of information or access to information held on government, in academic circles, in private industry and charities by third parties.
"Sometimes those parties are states, sometimes those parties are actors working for states and sometimes they're just criminal actors looking to steal information to make money."
He said this happens on an "ongoing and regular basis" and that while this has never been "formally attributed to any State", work by European colleagues attributed some to two different Russian state actors and Chinese state actors.
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