ArmInfo. Cyber security is a priority for Armenia, because it is an integral part of the country's national security, Arsen Gabrielyan, Deputy Head of the Information Security Department of the National Security Service of Armenia, said at an international workshop dedicated to the fight against cyber crimes.
He pointed out that special attention is paid to the crimes committed by special services and hacking groups of several states. "Cyber security issues are gradually becoming more topical, especially given the attempted attacks on the state structures' websites," he said, adding that the National Security Service is taking various measures aimed at defending the data and the activities of the infrastructures. Gabrielyan added that according to the data of 2015, nearly 1 million hacker attacks were prevented. Most of these cases were attempted attacks on the state structures' websites and attempted introduction of virus software in various information portals.
For his part, information security expert Samvel Martirosyan pointed out the need to create mechanisms to inform the Armenian society of the information security problems. In this context, he noted that more than 50% of the citizens do not worry about the security of their personal data. He added that the state structures of Armenia did not take the cyber security issues seriously, considering only Azerbaijan and Turkey as the main threats.
Martirosyan pointed out the example of VTB Bank (Armenia), whose subscribers suffered losses due to the fraudulent transactions. He added that he himself reported such problems in 3-4 banks, however, unlike the other banks, VTB Bank (Armenia) proved to be honest and reported the problem. "In fact, this is a serious problem and enhancement of public awareness is a topical task," he stressed.