Thailand's National Cybersecurity Agency bolsters cybersecurity

Thailand’s digital economy is expected to more than double by 2030, reaching upwards of US$100 million (S$133.18 million) from an estimated US$46 billion today. 

To bolster the cyber resilience of its digital landscape, the National Cyber Security Agency (NCSA) of Thailand will deploy tools to build capabilities among its telecom operators and boost online safety of citizens and residents in Thailand. For this, it has entered into a strategic partnership with Google Cloud. 

Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Economy and Society, Prasert Jantararuangtong, underscored the government’s commitment to strengthen cybersecurity and combat online scams, as organisations and individuals increasingly embrace digital platforms. 

“This collaboration will involve NCSA joining forces with Google Cloud, leveraging its industry-leading security operations expertise to develop cutting-edge, national-level solutions that enhance our country’s cyber resilience,” said Jantararuangtong. 

The collaboration will cover three main areas to safeguard Thailand’s digital growth, including threat intelligence, incident response expertise, and coordinating its national cyber defence strategy. 

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Bolstering national cyber defence  

NCSA plans to deploy Google Cloud Cybershield to centralise monitoring of security events across public sector entities. 

The Cybershield offers automation, analytics, threat intelligence, and artificial intelligence (AI), which enables the Thailand Computer Emergency Response Team (ThaiCERT) to take a more coordinated and streamlined response to potential cyber threats targeting government agencies and critical national infrastructure. 

ThaiCERT is NCSA’s national cyber defence centre.  

NCSA and Google Cloud will also share threat intelligence to provide the former with visibility into global threats and support the Thai government-wide cyber defence operations.  

NCSA will have access to Google Threat Intelligence which includes Mandiant’s frontline threat intelligence and VirusTotal’s threat database, which are cybersecurity firms under Google. 

This will enrich the government’s understanding of new and prevalent tactics, techniques, and procedures used by cybercriminals and state-sponsored actors targeting public sector entities. 

Mandiant consultants will deliver specialised hands-on training to public sector staff in areas like incident response, digital forensics, and malware analysis. 

These selected staff will be equipped with skills to rapidly detect, triage, and respond to sophisticated threats and intrusion scenarios, expanding the pool of cyber defense experts within Thailand’s public sector. 

NCSA’s collaboration with Google Cloud will be a significant “force multiplier” said NCSA Secretary General, Amorn Chomchoey, as the agency continues to provide training programs and toolkits to help state entities and enterprises improve their cybersecurity posture. 

Protecting the public from scams and harmful agents 

Beyond national cyber defence, the collaboration also aims to enhance online safety for individual users.  

NCSA and Google Cloud plan to integrate Google Cloud Web Risk into government workflows to protect the public from online scams and phishing websites.

 
Web Risk’s model leverages Google's threat intelligence repository, scanning over 10 billion URLs and files daily to identify phishing sites, malware downloads, and sources of unwanted software that violate Google’s Safe Browsing policies. 

Harmful agents will then be added to a threat intelligence repository and blocklist that protects more than five billion devices within minutes. 

Moreover, the information collected from Web Risk will be used to support NCSA’s existing capabilities, by enabling it to evaluate a higher volume of websites, proactively block user access to dangerous URLs, warn users about unsafe links, and prevent the spread of harmful content. 

Building on past collaborations 

The collaboration between Google and the Thai government builds on existing successful and ongoing efforts to build Thailand’s digital infrastructure. 

Last year, Google announced a US$1 billion investment to develop cloud and data center infrastructure in the cities of Bangkok and Chonburi. 

Thailand’s Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra concluded a recent meeting with president of Google Cloud Asia-Pacific, Karan Bajwa, in January where the parties explored deeper cybersecurity collaboration. 

GovInsider previously covered the country’s digital ambitions, where its top tech official at the time Methini Thepmani highlighted the significant infrastructure outlay required.  

During Safer Songkran last year, which is a Safer with Google initiative that ran parallel with the Thai New Year festivities, the newly launched anti-scam feature within Google Play Protect blocked more than 6.6 million high-risk app installation attempts to date on more than 1.4 million Android devices in Thailand. 

Google will implement additional mobile security measures in conjunction with this year’s Safer Songkran in April. The toggle switch for turning off Play Protect’s app scanning feature will now be disabled during standard phone calls. 

These measures target cybercriminals who use social engineering tactics to trick users into turning off Play Protect and downloading harmful apps from unofficial sources.