The Superintendent of Banks, Amauri A. Castillo, and the Administrator General of the National Authority for Government Innovation (AIG, for its acronym in Spanish), Luis Ricardo Oliva, signed an Inter-institutional Agreement for Cybersecurity.
The Agreement is intended to expand the sources of information for the timely identification and communication of red flags on risks, vulnerabilities and sectorial attacks, by improving the exchange of information on digital security incidents and promoting cooperation to strengthen cybersecurity in the financial sector and in the country.
The signing of this Agreement is effected in compliance with Executive Decree 709 dated 26 September 2011 of the Ministry of the Presidency, which created the Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT-Panama) and whose implementation is under the responsibility of the AIG.
This Executive Decree authorizes the Administrator of the AIG to enter into agreements with public institutions and national or international private entities to promote the implementation, operation and administration of the CSIRT-Panama.
In this regard, and taking into consideration that the banking and financial sector is vulnerable to cyberattacks, the AIG and the SBP seek with this agreement to prevent, or at least minimize, the damage that this type of attack brings, so cooperation is essential at the national, regional and international levels.
By entering into this Agreement, the exchange of information on cybersecurity policies, incidents and best practices, the promotion of training plans and the active participation in cybersecurity forums are established.
Furthermore, both authorities agreed to promote mutual knowledge transfer and skills development processes, assistance and cooperation at the national and international levels, as well as to jointly review the catalog of critical infrastructures, to assess their current status, the prioritization of the management of its associated risks and, in particular, the impact of attacks on other infrastructures that could affect the Panamanian banking system.
The Agreement is based on the principles of reciprocity, confidentiality and trust as a requirement to act diligently and will have a duration of three (3) years.
