Cyber Sector Takes Center Stage: Israel Bolsters Defenses in Response to Surge of Attacks

Israel has seen a 2.5x rise in cyberattacks since October 7, primarily from Iran and Hizbullah. Despite challenges, its cybersecurity remains resilient, showcased at Tel Aviv's Global Cybertech conference

Israel has experienced a surge in cyberattacks since the Hamas-led massacre on October 7, with the National Cyber Directorate reporting a 2.5 times increase in incidents, 800 of them having significant potential for damage. Despite this, Israel’s cybersecurity industry has shown resilience, adapting to increased hacking threats from Iran and Hizbullah.

At the Global Cybertech conference this week in Tel Aviv, Israeli and international experts addressed the growing cyber threats, innovations, and start-ups. Refael Franco, co-founder of Code Blue, a cyber crisis and disaster management company, told The Media Line, “We are running a crisis all over the globe. There is no 100% prevention of the attacks, so our philosophy is to make a plan B for bad days.”

Franco—a former deputy head of the national cyber directorate, head of the Israeli national cyber defense branch, and recipient of the Israeli National Security Award—said that the attack of Hamas on Israel on October 7 raises issues of cyber security.

“There were rumors that Hamas also attacked with cyber tools, but this is not true. However, they collect information from the cameras and the open source intelligence, and they get a lot of data from the open platforms,” Franco said.

He also shared with The Media Line that all Israeli neighborhoods are equipped with tools for cyber attacks, emphasizing Iran. “Iran is a strong player with good cyber capabilities. They also have the motivation to attack the Israeli civilian market, critical infrastructure, and water manufacturing.”

“When I was in my position, they tried to penetrate energy companies and hospitals. From time to time, unfortunately, they succeeded,” Franco shared.

He also referred to the Russian threat as “the big brother of Iran.” According to Franco, Iran sells drones and gets cyber capabilities from Russia.

Despite the ongoing danger, he explained that Israel felt prepared for possible attacks.

Israel’s high-tech ecosystem has been growing during the war, as evidenced by the continuous growth of its start-ups, according to Franco. “The ecosystem of the high tech in the cyber market, with research and development in the universities and the support from the government, is still strong,” he added.

Co-founder and CEO of CybergymIEC Ofir Hason told The Media Line that cyber is a critical and major part of the war right now.

“I think the basics of security is awareness. We have to protect not only against missiles or suicide bombers but also against cyber attacks.”

He explained that the cyber domain is firmly integrated as part of the military domain to prepare for an attack against critical infrastructure in government or social media to influence public opinion.

According to Hason, AI is both an opportunity and a threat in the cyber security domain.

“We’re just starting to scratch the surface regarding the combination of AI and security. In 5 or 10 years, it will be much more active. I don’t think it’s just good or bad. It depends how we’re going to use it,” he said.

Oshri Asher is a security specialist who leads cyber shield training at Google and is an ex-chief Information Security Officer at the Prime Minister’s office.

He shared that Google now has a few solutions for enterprises and governments. The heart of most of them is the Chronicle, the SecOps bundle package for collecting information and reacting to cyber threats. AI is a critical factor in that solution.

According to Asher, AI will not replace security teams but make them much more efficient.

“If you ask any CISO, they always need more people. AI can fill that gap,” he told The Media Line. “Indeed, you have to use AI to defend it, invest to protect the AI, make sure it’s safe, and provide solutions.”

Israel’s proficiency in the high-tech industry and cybersecurity is exemplified during its conflict with Hamas.

Brig. Gen. Yael Grossman, Commander of the C4l Branch’s Lotem Technological Unit of the IDF, shared at the Global Cybertech conference that the war after October 7 is the most effective in terms of saving people on the fronts due to technological and security innovations.

“It is possible because of the very modern digital medicine capabilities, which are tailor-made treatment to the different people who need to be taken care of on the battlefield,” she explained.

Grossman added that the army is now equipped with secured mobile phones that help make breakthroughs at war.

“We provide connectivity between the different forces and different capabilities and apps. For example, secure chat, maps and videos, different alerts to ensure that we provide the relevant data to the forces in the frontier,” she explained.

Grossman said that in 2022, the main thing the unit applied was a digital headquarters, which provided the commanders with the best understanding and more information.

“This is the greatest digital turning point we’ve had so far. It’s based on the ability to have data-informed decisions and multidisciplinarity data, voice, video, text, and more to have the best decisions when needed in the frontier,” she added.

Brig. Gen. Yael Grossman also mentioned the role of AI in the future of the army.

“The ability to have data-driven decisions based on AI and Gen-AI capabilities, platforms, and also protecting all of that is wonderful,” she said.

Nations are prioritizing cybersecurity and ensuring readiness against evolving threats to protect against cyber espionage and safeguard critical infrastructure. It is important to understand that cybersecurity is not just about technology—it plays a vital role in maintaining stability, security, and resilience in a contested world.

As cyber-attacks occur frequently and globally, it has become clear that individual countries cannot handle cybersecurity issues and threats independently. Governments need to cooperate with each other by sharing information, knowledge, and experiences. The international guests of the Global Cybertech conference represented this position.

David Foy, Head of Sector Development and Digital Economy at Luxinnovation GIE, shared his beliefs about exchanging experiences and knowledge of cyber threats.

“Everything we do in Luxembourg through our National Cyber Competence Centre is open source. We promote and advocate aggressively for the sharing of data. It’s a bit like the weather. The more information you have, the better you’re prepared.”

Director at the Central Office for Information Technology in the Security Sector (ZiTIS), Germany, Wilfred Karl, supported this statement by sharing that cooperation is essential in dealing with crimes.

“Criminals, especially organized crime, have always been very good at adopting new technologies, and organized crime knows no borders,” he said. “So we should work together across borders to counter this. There is a need to develop trust for a long-lasting partnership.”