Sri Lanka showing increased focus on cyber security: Sajan Paul

“We are witnessing an increased focus on cyber security in Sri Lanka in recent times,” stated Juniper Networks Enterprise, CTO, India and SAARC Head Sajan Paul, while sharing his thoughts on the threat of hacking and the crucial role played by cyber security in Sri Lanka and across the globe. “These days, every Request for Proposal (RFP) document that we receive from Sri Lankan organisations has a security element based on certain best practices,” he added. 

Juniper Networks was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California. With over 9,300 employees across 117 offices in 47 countries and revenues of $ 4.648 billion in 2018, Juniper Networks is a global innovator in the networking technology space that simplifies the complexities of networking with products, solutions and services in the cloud era. 

It also helps remove the traditional constraints of networking to enable customers and partners to deliver automated, scalable and secure networks that connect the world. Juniper has been present in the Sri Lankan market since 1997 and has experienced significant growth in the island and across the region, particularly in the service provider sector.

Sajan Paul added: “In security, we start by learning what are the best practices when it comes to things such as infrastructure, design, architecture and so on. Of course, then there is always room for improvement based on course correction. For instance, if a cell site or tower is hacked it is likely that a number of connections in that area will go down. So, we must look at how much more security will one need to keep that particular cell site safe? 

“There is always room to add more security but it all boils down to the investment vs the risk that you carry. If a company is looking at a budget for the next year, security has to be a key cost factor. Security has become like a business. The ROI is like a medical insurance. It is almost certain that an incident will take place somewhere down the line. Therefore, a one-time investment in security is never enough. You have to keep investing because the threats out there are constantly changing and increasing in complexity as even hackers are using tools like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning.”