Prague, July 16 (CTK) – The headquarters of the cyber forces the Czech military plans to establish might be based in Brno, Chief-of-Staff Ales Opata told reporters on Monday, adding that the cyber forces command is to be founded as of January 2019 and be capable of operation one year later.
The new unit will gradually accept up to 500 soldiers, with the costs reaching hundreds of million crowns, Opata and Miroslav Feix, in charge with the unit’s establishment, said.
Feix said the present society is dependent on the Internet and the state’s vulnerability via the Internet has been rising.
“Cyber attacks are becoming a threat to the state security,” Feix said.
He said Czechia’s gaps in this area are small for the time being, but they would markedly rise if the IT influence were underestimated.
“We have to create cyber forces that would be capable of conducting combat activities in cyberspace and taking part in allied operations,” Feix said.
The new unit’s task will be to integrate and interconnect the current capacities and provide the forces that are missing now.
Last year, the military’s cyber experts and the Military Intelligence Service (VZ) clarified the mutual division of powers.
“We [are empowered to] defend our own nets and our cyberspace area, we gain information for out own needs and operate on the tactical and operational level of operations,” Feix said on the part of the military.
The cyber forces command is to be established as of January 2019. Its executive part will be established of next July and gain partial and full operational capabilities as of 2020 and 2025, respectively.
Opata said the military will try to attract mainly young people, whom it wants to offer opportunities they would hardly be offered elsewhere.
The command might be seated in Brno, where other institutions dealing with cyber security are seated.
