By Onome Amuge
Google, Microsoft, IBM, Apple and other leading technology companies have committed to investing over $30 billion to strengthen cybersecurity defenses and to train skilled workers in the technology space.
The announcement was made during President Joe Biden’s private meeting with top executives in the technology sector at the White House in Washington, following instances of ransomware attacks that have targeted critical infrastructure and major corporations, as well as other illicit cyber operations that U.S. authorities have linked to foreign hackers.
In his remarks, Biden urged technology experts in the private sector to do their parts to protect basic infrastructure against the increasingly sophisticated cyber attacks
“The reality is most of our critical infrastructure is owned and operated by the private sector, and the federal government can’t meet this challenge alone. I have invited you all here today because you have the power, the capacity and the responsibility, I believe, to raise the bar on cybersecurity,” he stated.
After the meeting, the U.S government released a statement which stated that Google had committed to invest $10 billion in cybersecurity over the next five years, an investment targeted at helping secure the software supply chain and expand zero-trust programmes.
The statement further noted that Microsoft pledged $20 billion investment in cybersecurity over the next five years as well as provision of $150 million in technical services to help local governments upgrade their defenses.
On its part, IBM said it would train 150,000 people in cybersecurity over three years, while Apple said it would develop a new programme to help strengthen the technology supply chain, and Amazon said it would offer to the public the same security awareness training it gives to employees, the statement said.
