"On Friday (August 11), I was asked to talk about the possibility of Indonesia, like Singapore, to have a cyber force. I have to offer a roadmap on whether Indonesia will have a cyber force to add to (the current TNI branches of) the Army, Navy, and Air Force," Widjajanto stated at a seminar on the national resilience of Indonesia's Digital Transformation 2045 here, Monday.
Widjajanto remarked that Indonesia could follow Singapore, which already has its cyber force, the Digital and Intelligence Services, as the fourth branch of the military.
According to the Lemhannas governor, significant changes in the field of cyber defense have encouraged Singapore to form a cyber force.
"They need to attract digital talent into the cyber defense sector," he stated.
However, the proposal to form the Cyber Force in the country is still in its early stages, as several ministries and institutions have their own cyber units.
"The Ministry of Defense and the TNI have their cyber units. There are also cyber units in the police and the BSSN (National Cyber and Crypto Agency). Will it evolve into a separate force like in Singapore?" he stated.
Widjajanto believes that the TNI Headquarters and the Defense Ministry can improve the cyber unit in the next five years.
The achievement could attract digital talent in Indonesia to be involved in cyber defense.
"From there, maybe we can think about whether, like Singapore, we need to jump to form the fourth branch, the Indonesian Digital Force," he remarked.
He affirmed that Indonesia should learn from Singapore, which had prepared for the establishment of the cyber force since seven years ago. Singapore has officially created the Digital and Intelligence Services in October 2022.
Currently, Singapore has three thousand personnel of the Digital and Intelligence Services. The number will continue to grow to 12 thousand troops within eight years, he remarked.
"They have green uniforms for the Army, white uniforms for the Navy, blue uniforms for the Air Force, and gray for the Digital and Intelligence Services," he noted.
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Translator: Narda M Sinambela, Sri Haryati
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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