KUALA LUMPUR, July 21 — The Defence Ministry (MINDEF) is working to establish a Cyber Force as the fourth service branch of the Malaysian Armed Forces to address the threats posed by modern and cognitive warfare.
Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin said this is necessary as today's threats are no longer confined to traditional physical combat, but have shifted towards dominance in cyberspace and the shaping of public perception.
"We need to implement the Total Defence (HANRUH) concept because, in today's modern threats and challenges, wars do not necessarily begin with confrontation between security forces. They may instead start by taking control of our social media and other platforms.
"That is why, at the Defence Ministry, we are working on efforts to establish a Cyber Force as the fourth service branch, as we have found that this is something we simply cannot avoid," he said.
Khaled was responding to Senator Datuk Seri Prof Noor Inayah Ya'akub's supplementary query on the integration of cyber and cognitive threats into the implementation of HANRUH, in the Dewan Negara today.
Responding to the original query from Senator Datuk Ahmad Ibrahim on strengthening the implementation of HANRUH, he said that MINDEF is also undertaking various initiatives, including enhancing the National Service Training Programme at public institutions of higher learning.
Other initiatives include increasing the allocation for Civil-Military Cooperation to RM20 million by 2026, as well as launching the Defence Literacy Programme in collaboration with Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia and the Malaysian Institute of Defence and Security.
