The Deputy Minister of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy, Nikodimos Damianou, announced his decision to send to the Legal Service the finding on the water leak in the data center housed in the basement of the Ministry of Finance, along with his comments, on Friday, during a meeting with journalists. .
He pointed out that "there are currently 5-6 centers that do not meet the standards" and that the procedures to find suitable sites are already underway.
During the meeting at the Deputy Ministry, Mr. Damianou stated that upon assuming his duties he requested and was informed about the risks concerning the state's data centers, which he said are approximately 40 in number. He explained that these are the places where the computers - servers and other network devices and systems of the government departments are hosted.
Speaking about the risks that exist for data centers, Mr. Damianou said that "these risks have existed for years." He noted that on his predecessor, Filippo Hatzizacharias, they were detected, also due to the incident of a serious water leak in the data center hosted in the basement of the Ministry of Finance. He added that the transfer of the servers took place in November 2023 and at the moment they are kept in a specific building, in a secure area, where the necessary security measures are observed.
"I wish to give credit to my predecessor for promptly and successfully handling the issue, as while the problems had existed for many years, no decision had been made to resolve the issue by previous Governments," said Mr. Damianou.
Speaking about the incident that occurred on April 10, 2023 at the Ministry of Finance, Mr. Damianou said that it is known that the administrative investigation was ordered and completed, which he took over upon assuming his duties.
He emphasized that he had received and read the research, noting that "according to my reading" it documented and highlighted the long delay and time-consuming decision-making processes regarding the transfer of IT systems from their inappropriate premises to suitable ones data centers.
At the same time, as he said, there is a significant lack and inadequacy of a culture of assigning responsibility, significant deficiencies in terms of procedures and mechanisms for monitoring systems and conditions in data centers, in accordance with best practices, but also weaknesses, malfunctions and inadequacies of the way of administration.
"According to my own professional experience, the issue primarily concerns the IT services, which have the primary role and responsibility for the proper functioning of the systems, while the cooperation mechanisms with other government services are also important, which is necessary to ensure this goal", said the Deputy Minister.
He pointed out that although the serious issues are raised, "the result of the finding does not satisfy me" indicating that "based on my professional experiences in the private sector, I would expect to see such evidence that can lead to conclusions of attribution of responsibilities. In the present case, this is not the case," he pointed out.
He stated that he would send the finding, together with his observations, to the Legal department for their own perusal and advice.
He added that given the existence of other data centers that do not meet the necessary standards, due to a chronic inability to make decisions, "it is imperative that we act immediately to ensure the safety and suitability of the hosting areas of the systems, in order to eliminate the risk of similar incidents in the future".
He stated that the Government, having taken cognizance and assessed the data and the risks that have existed for years, has made it a priority to take immediate action to find an effective comprehensive solution to the problem, noting that "the relevant actions have begun".
Stakeholder meeting next week on eJustice
Speaking on the issue of eJustice, the Deputy Minister of Innovation said that the framework of actions and controls that will be followed has been determined so that in a documented manner and following the standards required by modern technology project control practices, the changes that were co-decided by the involved bodies to be needed to improve the system.
He also stated that the situation regarding the required changes that the company must implement is being finalized in cooperation with the Cyprus Bar Association (PDA) and the Supreme Court and announced that a meeting has been scheduled for March 12 with all those involved – PDA, Supreme Court, Contractor – to coordinate the immediate next steps.
Agreement with Microsoft 8 million euros for the public
At the same time, Mr. Damianou stated that next week the framework agreement (Enterprise Agreement) will be officially announced, amounting to 8 million euros, which the Deputy Ministry has concluded with the Microsoft company, and which concerns the supply of Microsoft 365 software licenses for 10.000 public sector users.
As he explained, licenses are provided for a wide range of modern tools, such as e-mail services, secure collaboration and document circulation tools, cloud computing services, project management tools as well as executive training.
"This is a strategic agreement that is expected to significantly contribute to the strengthening of the efficiency of the public service, while it is part of a series of actions that we are planning to modernize the internal operation of the state machine," said Mr. Damianou.
"Digital Citizen"
Asked about the "Digital Citizen" platform and the stage at which its implementation is at, Mr. Damianou said that the planning and implementation of the platform that will give the Cypriot citizen, the way in which he will gradually begin to handles its transactions with the state electronically.
As he explained, the initial stage will include issuing and signing documents, submitting applications, through the screen of a computer or mobile device. Mr. Damianou informed the journalists that the said platform will come into effect within this year.
Speaking about the issue of cyber security, Mr. Damianou said that it is a very important issue, saying that additional personnel will be recruited.
The Deputy Minister of Innovation also said that digital transformation is at the heart of the government program, noting that it has the potential to have a horizontal impact on all government priorities, as they have been highlighted by the President of the Republic himself, in the recent cross-channel interview, but and in the presentation of the previous annual government program.
He noted that the Deputy Ministry has in the last year produced work with a substantial impact, bringing as an example the online application for the EEE, the platform for submitting applications from the National Solidarity Fund, the expansion of the Hippodamus system of Urban Planning and the new TaxForAll Portal.
Source: KYPE