Pakistan orders cyber security measures ahead of Defence Day

The NSOC will also support a coordinated response to major cyber incidents that could affect the country’s digital infrastructure. The National CERT has directed critical institutions to continuously monitor important networks, systems, websites and digital services.

Institutions have also been instructed to immediately report major cyber incidents, suspicious activity and potential security breaches. Organizations have been asked to maintain continuous contact with the NSOC for cyber threat intelligence sharing and coordinated response.

They must also ensure the availability of cyber security focal persons and technical teams from September 5 to 7. Technical teams have been directed to remain prepared for immediate communication, escalation and response in the event of a cyber incident.

Special measures have been recommended to protect government and critical institutions’ websites, portals, APIs and email services. Organizations have been advised to activate web application firewalls and DDoS protection and keep web systems updated. Institutions have also been instructed to implement multi-factor authentication and stronger security controls for administrative accounts, update operating systems and disable unnecessary services.

Firewalls and intrusion detection and prevention systems on critical servers should remain active. Critical databases should not be directly exposed to public IP addresses, while security logs must be continuously monitored.

The National CERT has further directed institutions to keep disaster recovery sites ready for immediate use, maintain offline or air-gapped backups of critical systems and configurations, and test recovery mechanisms. Data centres and security operations centres have also been instructed to ensure alternative internet connectivity, UPS systems and generator backup.