The growth of the cybersecurity sector will create more than 1,000 highly qualified jobs over the next two years.
The Councillor for European Funds, University and Culture, Miquel Company, today presented the Cybersecurity Strategy of the Balearic Islands to the island councils and representatives of business organisations, a planning and promotion tool in this area that involves the creation of the Cybersecurity Centre of the Balearic Islands, a new body to deal with a growing volume of cyber threats to Balearic society.
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The Balearic Cybersecurity
With an annual investment of two million euros, the Balearic Islands Government’s strategy is committed to technological innovation as a tool for protection against a growing threat. It will therefore create a service aimed at helping citizens, other administrations and also companies, especially SMEs and the self-employed, to deal with cybersecurity incidents such as computer fraud, cyber-attacks and other cybercrimes.
The Cybersecurity Centre will also be responsible for detecting and managing cyber threats, collecting regional data on cybersecurity and promoting prevention and training policies, and maintaining permanent coordination with the new Cybersecurity Technological Innovation Unit of the UIB, the National Cryptology Centre and institutions and the Balearic Islands business sector.
According to the minister, the Government wants to respond to the risk posed by this global phenomenon and, at the same time, to support an emerging sector within the field of technology. In fact, forecasts for an increase in economic activity in the area of cybersecurity point to the need to create approximately 1,100 highly qualified jobs between 2023 and 2024; an increase of more than 100% over the total of 1,000 professionals currently working in this area in the Balearic Islands.
The actions envisaged in the Strategy also include the creation of a university chair to guarantee a focus on innovation, the promotion of vocational training specialisation courses in cybersecurity in order to train professionals for an emerging sector and the development of an interregional project in which the Balearic Islands will contribute knowledge in the field of tourism in cybersecurity issues (CIBERREG project shared with Navarre, Asturias, the Canary Islands, Cantabria, Castile-La Mancha, Extremadura, the Community of Madrid and the Region of Murcia).
Among the objectives pursued by the Strategy presented today, Minister Miquel Company highlighted the need to guarantee and increase the level of security of the Autonomous Community’s communications networks and information systems in an increasingly digital administration and added that the development of this sector will contribute to the transformation of the socio-economic model by strengthening the business fabric of the ICT sector in the Balearic Islands.
“Reports of cybercrime have increased fourfold in just four years. In 2020, nearly 12,000 complaints were registered, of which more than 80% were for computer fraud and more than 7% for threats and coercion. It is clear that we need to protect our public services, our economy and the security of citizens. With this strategy, we want to go further and make cybersecurity a tool for growth and economic diversification,” said the minister.
The presentation was attended by the director general of Modernisation and Digital Administration, Ramon Roca, as well as the heads of the CAIB and IB-Salud cybersecurity services. On behalf of the University of the Balearic Islands, the former rector and director of the Cybersecurity Technological Innovation Unit, Llorenç Huguet, and the vice-rector of Innovation and Digital Transformation, Loren Carrasco. Representatives of the National Cryptologic Centre, the island councils, business organisations (Chamber of Commerce of Mallorca, Círculo de Economía de Mallorca, CAEB) and companies in the sector (INTEC, INETUM, SM2 Plexus, Telefónica, Fortinet) also took part.