BrazilEY launches its latest cyber-security centre in the Philippines
Professional services firm Ernst & Young has launched a new multimillion-dollar front-line cyber-security centre in the Philippines' capital Manila.
Following the launch of what was its biggest Asia Pacific cybersecurity centre in Melbourne just three months ago, global professional services firm Ernst & Young has further added to its regional frontline capabilities with yet another multimillion-dollar cyber-centre in Manila. Siting within the firm’s Global Delivery Services (GDS) practice, the state-of-the-art cybersecurity centre in the Philippines will serve both regional and global clients.
“With increasing digitisation and a highly networked global world, and the continuous talent gap, our Manila center would play a key role in helping bridge the demand-supply gap of cybersecurity professionals,” said EY GDS advisory services leader Arun Batra. “This is closely linked to the GDS cybersecurity facilities in India, Poland and China and other EY cybersecurity centres like Singapore, Melbourne and Dallas.”
On the launch of its latest centre, EY cited the more than three quarters of organisations which according to its own survey operate with limited cybersecurity and resilience – with those in the Asia Pacific and in particular Southeast Asia consistently noted as the most vulnerable in part due to the region’s high levels of connectivity and intraregional trade. At the local level, Kaspersky Labs last year ranked the Philippines in the top-twenty countries for risk worldwide.
“We operate in a vast digital landscape and cyber risks are evolving,” commented Maria Elizabeth de Guzman, Cybersecurity Leader for new centre. “Attackers could hit us on machine speed, while many organisations are still responding on human speed. Our new GDS Manila cybersecurity center is strategically built to continue to raise awareness and defences through the latest technology and innovation against emerging threats.”
According to reports, the new cyber facility provides automated security services supported by intelligent automation, with examples including triaged incident response and threat hunting protection powered by security orchestration, automation and response – operating around the clock and closely connected to sister centres throughout the region through real-time collaboration tools, including EY’s recently launched 2,500 square foot Melbourne hub.
While the new hub’s current headcount hasn’t been disclosed (the Melbourne centre launched with 40 cyber professionals with expertise in a range of disciplines), EY GDS’ Cybersecurity Leader Vinod Jayaprakash noted that the Philippines and cybersecurity were two of the division’s biggest growth drivers, and that the “new state of the art centre would help us generate more employment opportunities in Manila.”
Reflecting on the launch on LinkedIn, de Guzman posted; “Those four corners of that previous cyber room that we once called ‘CTM lab’ have a lot of remarkable stories to tell – late night conversations about dreams, stories of friendship, valor and passion and our vision to build GDS Manila as a global cybersecurity hub – the journey has not been easy. Two years later, we are here now and we will always be grateful.”
