Letters to the Editor: Ireland urgently needs to step up its cybersecurity
'Cyber attacks happen at the speed of light requiring quasi instant decision making, risk assessment, and rapid operational measures in real-time managed by a single central authority.' Stock picture
The drip feed of information covering the alleged drone incursion during Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s arrival at Dublin Airport on Monday, December 1, shows once again that the current ministerial governance structures for digital transformation are not fit for purpose, particularly concerning cybersecurity.
Mr Zelenskyy’s plane may have landed safely but how many other planes arriving or departing from Dublin Airport at the time could have been interfered with?
Our politicians don’t seem to appreciate the devastation a cyberwar could visit on us. Attacks on our public sector digital infrastructures and private sector data ecosystems could transform Ireland into a digital wasteland overnight.
Cyber attacks happen at the speed of light requiring quasi instant decision making, risk assessment, and rapid operational measures in real-time managed by a single central authority so as to protect the nation’s digital infrastructures and data assets, and safeguard people’s lives.
Unfortunately, the Zelenskyy drone attack confirms that we have a mishmash of government departments with silo mindsets all operating in the cyber space with no overall chain of command, no agreed escalation protocols, and no information exchange agreements between agencies.
Engineers Ireland in its State of Ireland 2020 report recommended:Â
The HSE cyberattack in May 2021 was also a wake-up call.
Regrettably, until now, we have continued to whistle in the dark without prioritising any meaningful investment by government.
So of course the increased defence budget approved by the Government last Thursday is to be welcomed, but procurement, training, installation, and handover take time during which it is likely that cyberattacks will increase.
Thus, it is even more critical to have the appropriate governance structures in place to manage these investments and protect us from future cyberattacks.
A minister of state for digital affairs must be appointed, reporting directly to the Taoiseach, and consolidating responsibilities for digital transformation, AI sovereignty, and cybersecurity.
Implementing such a reorganisation of government services, before our EU presidency, would reassure our EU partners that Ireland is no longer the weak link in Europe’s digital defences.
There is no place like home. For millions of Syrians, that truth is bittersweet. More than 2.2m Syrians have made the arduous journey home since the fall of the Assad regime one year ago. Four million have yet to take that first step. What awaits them? Streets lined with waste and rubble; homes reduced to hollow shells; schools and hospitals functioning sporadically, and fragmented memories of what once was our country.
And yet, despite the ruins, a new Syria is emerging. We as a people are ready to rebuild. But rebuilding a nation requires more than courage; it needs infrastructure, investment, partnership, and collaborative action. Strengthening healthcare and education is critical to supporting growth as is meaningful employment for those considering their return.
For 12 years, Goal has stood alongside the Syrian people through fragile times and continues to do so. As a Syrian humanitarian worker living in Syria, I have witnessed first-hand how humanitarian aid met communities’ needs during the conflict years. The next step is now creating a sustainable future. Today, as new opportunities emerge, and the prospect of genuine renewal becomes visible, international investment especially from the European Union and committed partners has the potential to transform Syria.
As Ireland prepares to chair the EU presidency, it is essential that Syria remains high on the agenda. Moments of real opportunity in post-conflict contexts are rare. Investing in the Syrian people enabling them to be architects of their tomorrow, is worth considering, as it paves the way to bringing displaced Syrian’s back home.
This week I visited our parish office to have a couple of Masses offered. One was for a recently deceased Trappist monk, whose intercession I had sought a couple of days after his death and received a wonderful answer to prayer. The other was for a soldier from the Second World War, who was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for valour on his last mission, where he bled out from his wounds while covering the retreat of his men who were all saved.
I am grateful to both men.
This got me thinking about where true greatness lies.
I have met quite a few men whom I would consider great. Some are prominent with extraordinary stories but most are rather obscure, known only to the few whose lives they touch directly and yet all have the same characteristics.
One chap I see regularly drives a tuk-tuk, a three-wheeled vehicle used for short trips around the city.Â
Once a month I do a ‘big-shop’ at a supermarket and he brings me and my cargo home. When we first met I noticed an array of photographs along the top of the windscreen, he and his wife on each end and all his children at various stages of their education in the middle. When I asked about them, his eyes lit up and I heard all their stories, from elementary to high school, even a couple are in college now.
The job is hard.Â
Seven days a week, morning until night, a lot of competition for passengers, blistering heat in summer, torrential rain and floods in rainy season, and our famous traffic and pollution. But his life; and those of any great man, is attached to a higher purpose, something bigger than himself. He loves his family. This is the fuel for the journey, to provide for them, give them all that was needed. His toothless grin reveals his joy in sacrifice and selflessness, in his service to those he has been entrusted with. It is a daily dying to himself for others.
The foundation of greatness is sacrificial love, and by day and by decade the commitment is tested and the grit of character is developed in perseverance with grace to lubricate the process.
Greatness is not inaccessible, nor is it a special gift to a few extraordinary souls, it’s to choose to serve in love and keep going however intense or dull the life may be, until the end be it long or short.
At a time when public safety — especially the safety of children —is rightly receiving attention and careful planning, we should not overlook other continuous threats still unresolved, particularly at this time of year.
It has been reported that alcohol contributes to the deaths of four people every day, and there is little reason to doubt such a stark figure. It is also linked to roughly 80% of public-order offences and plays a role in around 70% of domestic violence incidents.
Yet, despite these well-known harms — before even considering its many other damaging effects — we still allow alcohol to be glamourised to an extraordinary extent in advertising, while the extensive negative consequences are barely acknowledged.
A rushed, mumbled verbal warning or a tiny, barely visible, small-print lecturing message is no longer acceptable.
We must remember the tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of men, women, and children across the country who quietly dread the festive season because of a loved one’s drinking. Alcohol’s role as a gateway to widely available other illicit substances is another serious concern, and one that has reached crisis levels.
Current public-awareness efforts are, at best, limited and, at worst, naive. Activities that cause far fewer deaths and have minimal impact on crime statistics are subject to far stronger public messaging. Why, then, are we so silent about alcohol’s devastating effects?
It surely falls to both the health minister and the justice minister to act urgently and address this glaring gap in our public-health approach. Clear, accurate communication about alcohol’s harms is routinely neglected, even though effective education and intervention could fundamentally reshape the situation.
A meaningful first step would be to give honest graphic health messages equal prominence in all forms of advertising, rather than solely permitting continual glorification with upbeat insinuations. Our collective denial and failure to include details of alcohol’s trail of destruction in all ads is far too serious to ignore any longer.
Half measures in dealing with such a powerfully potent, addictive product and hoping for the best are dangerously idealistic.
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