Transportation Ministry Launches Cyber Center Tender Five Years After Initial Promise
Translated & summarized from Calcalist by baba
The Israeli Ministry of Transportation has launched a tender to establish a cyber monitoring and response center, five years after the initial promise and four years after a critical State Comptroller's report. The center aims to collect data, conduct research, and assist in responding to cyber threats within the transportation sector. Potential bidders must meet specific experience, staffing, and financial criteria, with the tender covering physical infrastructure, technology, and operations.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- The Ministry of Transportation is issuing a tender for a cyber monitoring and response center.
- The project was first promised five years ago by former Minister Merav Michaeli.
- A 2022 State Comptroller's report criticized the ministry's delays in cyber defense regulation.
- The center will collect data, conduct research, and aid in responding to cyber threats.
- Tender applicants need at least four years of cyber experience and 10 employees.
The Israeli Ministry of Transportation is moving forward with plans to establish a cyber monitoring and response center, according to documents released by the ministry. This initiative follows a 2021 announcement by then-Minister of Transportation Merav Michaeli, who stated that a center to prepare for cyber threats in the transportation sector would become fully operational. Despite the earlier declaration, a State Comptroller's report in 2022 noted that the ministry had failed for over seven years to complete the necessary regulatory work for effective cyber defense in its areas of operation.
Now, four years after the comptroller's report and five years after Michaeli's initial promise, the tender for the center's establishment has been issued. The center is intended to collect data, conduct research, issue directives, warn against attacks, and assist monitored entities in responding to cyber incidents. The tender includes the physical construction of the center and its infrastructure, the technological framework for its operations, staffing, and operational readiness, including during emergencies.
Participants in the tender must have at least four years of experience in the cyber field, employ a minimum of 10 staff members, and have an annual turnover of at least 6 million shekels. The article also references a "first-of-its-kind center in the world for dealing with cyber threats in transportation" established in Be'er Sheva in July 2024, which serves as an advanced laboratory for smart vehicles and rail and sea transport systems.