Against a backdrop of cautious industry optimism, Malaysia’s largest Energy exhibition focused on positioning the country as a regional hub for talent and innovation.

“Time to shake off the rain,” was the key message in Malaysia Energy Services Council President Sharifah Zaida Nurlisha’s opening speech at the 2018 Malaysia Energy Services Exhibition and Conference (MOGSEC) held in Kuala Lumpur from 25-27 September. These were certainly welcome words to delegates from an industry that has been taking shelter for the past four years. In 2018, oil prices have averaged $72 per barrel, up from $54 per barrel in 2017. On the first day of MOGSEC came the news that that Brent oil had reached $81.16 per barrel, its highest level since November 2014.

Sustainable approaches

“As encouraging as it is, we can still expect volatility to continue, given the prevailing external factors such as trade wars and other geopolitical risks,” warned Tan Sri Wan Zulkiflee, president and group chief executive of Petronas. “The business models adopted have to be robust to go through the price cycles which are inherent in our industry,” he said. In addition to price cycles, Wan Zulkiflee pointed to consumer pressure leading to policy shifts such as some Malaysian states banning plastic straws from early 2019.

Petronas announced at the show that it will partner with Time Marine Services to jointly develop a new approach for sludge treatment to recover hydrocarbon onshore. Time Marine Services was pronounced the winner of the third Petronas Technology Challenge, which crowdsources innovative and economic solutions to Energy industry challenges, with a proposal that featured non-toxic and environment-friendly nanotechnology chemicals, capable of liquefying sludge and heavy wax.

Artificial intelligence and IoT

According to GlobalData, Malaysia is leading South-east Asia for the total number of planned and announced Energy projects, yet the continuing industry emphasis on cost management, operational efficiency, and safety was still evident in the MOGSEC exhibition hall. Artificial intelligence, sensors, drones, IoT, and virtual reality headsets were all on display as solutions to maintenance and inventory challenges as well as managing the cost, health and safety, and quality of life for workers based out on remote sites.

On its stand, Siemens was showcasing an AI platform for autonomous equipment health monitoring that provides predictive tools for early warnings along with inventory management in real time. The cloud-based platform links with IoT devices to spot anomalies and recommend corrective action. It enables customers to avoid unplanned downtime and becomes a practical day-to-day tool for assisting asset operations, says Vicknendran Krishna Younee, vice president of digitalisation power services.

Among three solutions being demonstrated on the TM One stand was a digitally-connected smart helmet with audio and video capabilities that can be accessed remotely, detects accidents, and can track, locate, and communicate with individuals. Allowing for collaborative work between on- and off-site teams, the helmets transmit data in real time so that site managers can monitor whether they are actually being worn or carried around in hand. The solution was developed after a series of design thinking sessions with industry partners who cited safety, communication and remote troubleshooting as key concerns said Dr Sharlene Thiagarajah, chief executive officer for TM R&D.

Priorities for MOGSEC in 2018 were ‘catalysing regional growth’ and ‘promoting home-grown solutions’. “It is only when we build and own the technology can we customize it to the local environment,” said Thiagarajah, noting that the team had produced a minimum viable product for the helmet in less than three weeks. The goal now is to expand: “data and digital certainly lowers the barrier of entry, which gives opportunity for us to sell beyond Malaysia,” she said.

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Digital Transformation has become a core driver of organisational change in the current era. In the meantime, the Energy industry has played a pivotal role in global economic transformation since the industrial revolution.

Opportunities are abound for the Energy sector to expand its boundaries through digitalisation, as industry players are expecting to see a recovery supported by better economic conditions this year. Oil prices have strengthened to above USD 65 per barrel and are expected to remain fluid in the short term, driven by escalating tension in the Middle East and traders’ position to capture opportunities from rapid movements of oil prices.

To support the Energy industry in their digital transformation, TM ONE has recently hosted an open day forum which discussed Digital Transformation within the Malaysian Energy sector. They were exposed to several innovative technologies, such as the Accelerated Artificial Intelligence (AAI) and Smart Helmet. 85% of the participants, representing various organisations, found that the forum was beneficial to them.

The participants noted that they have already embarked on their organisational digital transformation initiatives, and are gearing up their digital transformation in 2018. The remaining 15%, who are still planning their digital transformation in the next few years, noted that operational challenges such as connectivity and infrastructure, data management, cybersecurity and business processes are the reasons why they are taking some time to implement digital transformation in their own organisation.

Half of the organisations that are yet to implement digital transformation consider it to be important and view it as a priority in 2018, while the rest are looking to explore their organisational Digital Transformation within the next 3 years. For these organisations, their technology priorities for the next 6 to 12 months include Mobility (wearables, handled), Data Centre and Cloud services, Smart services (IoT, Sensors, Smart Building), Collaboration and Safety & Security.

Most Energy companies who are leading the way in digital are devising strategies that enable the convergence of IT and digital innovations with operations technology (OT). They continue to invest in systems to handle huge volumes of data in a fast, secure and flexible way. They are looking at harnessing the power of cloud and mobility to create cost-effective, efficient and safer operating environments.

Development in technologies such as Cloud, Social Media and Big Data & Analytics are driving trends that have immense potential for the Energy sector.

Nonetheless, the Energy industry needs to tackle a series of historic and structural inhibitors, which include data security regulations, standardisation of data collection platforms, integrated ecosystem, realignment of corporate culture and employee mindset, digital talent / workforce empowerment and cybersecurity, to unlock the full potential of Digital Transformation.

Digital enablers, from process digitisation to robotics and automation, can help realise this potential by supporting business processes in dynamic ways. Many new technologies and platforms are available for the Energy industry to exploit and enable themselves to move to the forefront of the digital industrial revolution. Digitally-led transformation initiatives are important levers in creating differentiation and help Energy players to remain financially afloat, and relevant, in their region.

The agriculture industry faces a variety of challenges such as climate change, low agriculture productivity and yield, high operating cost, and health hazards to farmers. Leveraging digital technologies, TM One Smart Agriculture solutions are opening a promising ability to address the industry’s long challenges through the Smart Farming revolution.

TM One Smart Agriculture offers a diverse set of solutions to help farmers adapt to technological advancement. One of the features is a centralised monitoring dashboard that is integrated into the IoT-powered machines, which enables farmers a holistic view of their entire machinery performances and crop conditions.

Watch this video and know more about how TM One Smart Agriculture solutions can provide more efficient and sustainable farming practices.

To learn more about TM One Smart Agriculture, Contact us here.

According to Technologist Dr. Saiyid Abdallah Syahir Al-Edrus, General Manager for Cybersecurity Services and Product & Innovation at TM One, every organisation has the responsibility to ensure that their cybersecurity strategies run in tandem with their business growth.

“Organisations are responsible to protect and safeguard their business and customer data from cybercriminals. They need to have the right tools, processes and above all the right people, a team of cyber-intelligence experts or security analysts, in place at all times.”

BusinessToday spoke to the industry expert who has over 15 years of experience in consulting, network security, endpoint security, cloud security, application & data security, and cybersecurity risk management, and who has leveraged his expertise to help organisations protect their businesses from the increasing challenge of cyber-attacks and threats.

He pointed out that many Malaysian organisations of all sizes and across all industries faced gaps between their perceived capabilities and their actual performance when it came to ensuring their cybersecurity strategies addressed the needs of their business.

“Organisations may believe that they have taken all the necessary steps to protect their data and systems, when they have not. This false sense of security has resulted in major global corporations and regional government agencies falling victim to massive security breaches.”

Dr. Saiyid also noted that organisations tended to become complacent. “Organisations often take for granted that they will not be the target for cyber-attacks, because they feel that they are not managing critical infrastructure and sensitive data. However, attackers will target any organisation that can provide them with a lucrative payoff.”

Lack of resources was a third factor, he added.

“Most organisations may not have the budget to invest in robust cybersecurity measures or the necessary expertise/personnel. Instead they often rely on general IT support. Unfortunately, cybersecurity itself encompasses a very huge spectrum and domain, for which you need specific skills, experience and knowledge.”

“Having an external partner that can provide professional and advisory services will help enterprises navigate and manage their cybersecurity strategy.”

Dr. Saiyid noted that while TM One, the enterprise and government sector arm of Telekom Malaysia Berhad is fully capable of providing a complete outsourced cybersecurity service to its customers, his preferred approach involved a hybrid solution between organisations and their cybersecurity partner.

“Cybersecurity strategies must be based on the organisation’s needs and priorities. My recommendation would be that policies are governed in-house, where the client dictates and determines which security services are needed and cybersecurity framework the organisation should adopt.”

Shifting Resources Purposefully

Responding to an IDC Enterprise Services Sourcing Survey, which stated that over 70% of Malaysian organisations recognised that security is not their core expertise, Dr. Saiyid pointed out that this view stems from understandable reasons – cybersecurity is generally underfunded and under-resourced.

“Businesses are often challenged to find and retain the right talents to manage digitalisation, cybersecurity, and innovation within their organisations. IT departments are now expected to support new revenue streams, on top of managing operational efficiency and reducing cost. Business leaders find it difficult to understand the ROI of IT security, and are more focused on growing their digital revenue – especially in the wake of COVID-19.”

As a result, meeting the need to secure these digital platforms can weigh on businesses’ priorities, requiring them to divert limited budgets and resources from opportunities to risk avoidance, Dr. Saiyid highlighted.

“In large organisations, managing cybersecurity efficiently requires a significant amount of resources and effort. Aside from the need to secure a well-equipped and complex IT environment, setting up a dedicated team means organisations need to invest in the technology and put together the security controls for the entirety of their IT environment. This can prove difficult as there is a marked scarcity of cybersecurity professionals, not only in Malaysia but internationally.”

With these realities, individual organisations should decide whether they want to outsource a certain portion of their cybersecurity responsibility or outsource the whole function.

“For instance, they can choose to retain identity management, which is the heart of IT operations and sits with Active Directory and domain controllers, while the rest, such as perimeter security, firewalls, intrusion prevention systems, or the 24/7 monitoring of the overall environment can be outsourced to the experts, like TM One.”

Service providers such as TM One can also provide organisations with round-the-clock protection, ensuring that their systems are always safe and secure. Furthermore, outsourcing cybersecurity can help organisations free up their internal resources so that they can focus on other areas of business.

TM One’s Professional Services supports organisations to assess their cybersecurity capabilities, and provides consulting and advisory services to help them strengthen their capabilities to respond to potential threats.

Specifically, TM One’s Cyber Defence Centre (CYDEC) is an end-to-end cybersecurity service which includes cybersecurity consulting or professional services to guide organisations carve out the best cybersecurity solutions that fit their needs and budget.

Through continuous support from TM One’s Security Operations Centre (SOC) and CyberAssurance services, organisations can benefit from managed security services to discover and address potential cybersecurity vulnerabilities, leverage solutions that help strengthen the readiness of in-house security teams, test systems to identify exploitable gaps, and monitor their broader business ecosystem to detect attacks or indicators of compromised systems and data more efficiently.

This includes Security Posture Assessment (SPA), Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing (VAPT) services and Digital Attack Simulation either as a one-time engagement or a retainer programme.

Organisations who are interested to learn more about how TM One can help enhance their cybersecurity profile can visit its website at https://www.tmone.com.my/solutions/cybersecurity-services/.

This article was first published in Business Today

Cyberattacks have now become a constant threat for businesses everywhere incurring cost and causing reputational issues, on top of other economic conditions that organisations have to contend with.

Despite the inevitability and increasing frequency of these attacks, most businesses have yet to adequately safeguard their infrastructure and systems, with today’s more sophisticated hackers finding new ways to attack businesses of all sizes.  

International Data Corporation (IDC) has reported that in 2021, Southeast Asian organisations spent a whopping US$3.2 billion on cybersecurity services, software and appliances.

Closer to home, the Malaysia Cyber Security Strategy 2020-2024 report states that the country may face economic losses of up to RM51 billion due to cyber threats. A study in VMware’s “The State of Incident Response 2021” report also found that 49% of organisations lack the expertise and tools for adequate incident response.

According toTs. Dr. Saiyid Abdallah Syahir Al-Edrus, General Manager, Cybersecurity Services, TM One, “A proactive strategy is when businesses wholly employ a good cybersecurity framework including leveraging new technologies and trends to keep their systems secure. Utilising artificial intelligence (AI) in cybersecurity and automation to bring benefits to their overall operations.”

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AI has revolutionised the world by leaps and bounds, with AI in cybersecurity making it much faster to trace potential attacks, reduce the delay in response time and ultimately save man hours. Technology enables cybersecurity solution providers and analysts to analyse similar attack patterns and provide the necessary responses if there is a behaviour change. 

Emerging cybersecurity technology will now help to facilitate organisations become more proactive. This includes the utilisation of security information and event management through technologies such as Extended Detection and Response (XDR), Security Orchestration, Automation and Response (SOAR) and Next Gen Security Operations Centre (SOC).

This ensures that enterprises and the government sector are able to implement and maintain a proactive cybersecurity strategy, leveraging the skills and capabilities of dedicated specialised talents and reducing the impact to their own over-stretched IT teams.

TM One works closely with its customers by thoroughly assessing their security posture, technology maturity and business needs through its consulting and other value-added services. The firm has positioned itself apart from its competitors through Managed Security Services (MSS) as its core solution offering. 

TM One also recently received the prestigious Frost & Sullivan Best Practices 2022 Cybersecurity Company of the Year award. 

Their credibility is seen in the development of its products and solutions offered for the cybersecurity scene. According to TM One, most Malaysian organisations lack in-house security expertise, professionals and tools. This leads to them importing or outsourcing their security operations to ensure the security posture of business infrastructure and manage their cyber risks.

To address this issue, TM One provides a wide spectrum of cybersecurity solutions, helping organisations improve their security posture and business infrastructure as well as better manage their cyber risks via TM One’s Cyber Defense Centre (CYDEC).  

CYDEC’s extensive and comprehensive cybersecurity portfolio includes MSS, encompassing managed unified threat management, managed SOC, managed detection and response, cyber threat intelligence, managed anti-DDoS, managed web application firewall, vulnerability management, capture-the-flag service, cyber deception service, digital risk protection and many more. 

TM One’s cybersecurity consulting services also include, and are not limited to, security assessment and posture, vulnerability assessment and penetration testing, cybersecurity design and implementation, compromised assessment and digital attack simulation.

Fuelled by TM’s SOC and centralised cybersecurity platform, TM One’s CYDEC incorporates advanced technologies like predictive analytics and machine learning to help customers address evolving cyberattacks on-premises and on the cloud. As an added advantage, this extensive cybersecurity portfolio allows TM One to curate and customise solutions based on customers’ needs across various business sizes. 

TM One has continuously proven that the right solution alongside robust technology will augment organisations in safeguarding systems, especially within the current complexities of today’s digital landscape. Prioritising cybersecurity skills as one of the most important areas to be addressed, TM One is committed to addressing the industry’s current challenges and support businesses navigate the digital space with greater confidence. 

To find out how TM One can help you achieve world class cybersecurity, visit Cybersecurity Services and Solutions — TM One CYDEC

This article was first published in CEO Morning Brief – The Edge Markets