National Encryption Agency (Lemsaneg) head Maj. Gen. (ret) Djoko Setiadi, recently re-appointed for a second term, has pledged to ensure the security of communication between government officials and President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.
Djoko said that one of his priorities would be improving data security systems.
“Lemsaneg is improving the security system. We have managed to build a strong algorithm,” Djoko said after his inauguration at the State Palace on Friday.
He also called on government agencies to prevent the use of foreign applications. “The nation has now managed to build a far more secure system,” Djoko said, adding that foreign-made applications were more vulnerable to attacks launched by other countries.
After President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s call for the implementation of e-governance across the country to support a more efficient bureaucracy, hackers launched attacks on a number of government websites last year, with the latest target being the website of the Cabinet secretary.
Djoko has previously announced that 20 to 50 government websites using the go.id domain get attacked by hackers on a daily basis.
Despite being in operation since 1952, Lemsaneg, which is tasked with helping the government to secure its classified data and information, remains an obscure state institution.
Djoko assumed his position in 2011 when he was still an active military official.
The Friday inauguration marked not only Djoko’s second tenure, after he retired from military service in December last year, but also a change in the encryption body, which is now under the President.
In 1972, Lemsaneg was transferred from the President’s authority to the Defense Ministry’s.
“That is why it was the President himself who inaugurated him,” Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung said after Djoko’s inauguration. “It’s function has been restored [to the initial 1952 arrangement] and it now answers directly to the President.”
The encryption agency has been helping the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) to improve the data protection and security of BKPM’s one-stop investment licensing services across the country, which was launched last year.
At the BKPM, Lemsaneg aims to ensure the security of all data submitted by investors.
Lemsaneg has also been providing data security for law enforcement agencies.
Djoko, however, claimed to have no knowledge as to why he was reassigned to the position, a decision made by Jokowi after his administration unveiled plans to establish a new body called the national cyber agency, which would lead a campaign against cyber attacks, including those threatening financial institutions and basic infrastructure, such as cellular services and electricity.
Djoko said the plan was still being discussed, adding that his office would be ready to help the government realize it.
Maj. Gen. (ret) Nachrowi Ramli, former Lemsaneg chief from 2002 to 2008, said Lemsaneg would face more complex challenges in the future and that it must prepare itself for an all-out attack on government data.
“He [Djoko] must be ready in terms of [preparing better] human resources, equipment, systems and strategies,” said Nachrowi, who was in charge of the implementation of the National Encryption System launched in 2004, which forms the backbone of the country’s platform for exchanging secret information between state institutions.
Under the system, all ministries and state-owned companies are required to install standardized encryption devices in certain phone and data transmission lines to prevent potential leaks during transfers of secret information.
“The human resources must be able to work professionally and must consist of people with various backgrounds and experience,” Nachrowi added.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Ina Parlina
Quelle/Source: The Jakarta Post, 09.01.2016
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