Protection for sensitive legal data gets boost

With state agencies facing higher risk from widespread Internet use, security for stored data regarding critical witnesses and other criminal and sensitive cases needed to be stepped up, Wisit Wisitsora-at, the ministry’s permanent secretary, explained.
ETDA has stepped in to help the Justice Ministry set up secure systems.
Precautionary measures will ensure that electronic data is not tampered with to distort the outcome of cases, he said, adding that the government was also in the process of setting up a national cybersecurity agency and upgrading various government services as per the Thailand 4.0 initiative.
For example, the Department of Legal Execution is preparing to phase out paper documents next year, so only digital copies of documents are used.
Surangkana Wayuparb, executive director of ETDA, said the agreement with the Justice Ministry is part of the national action plan on cybersecurity management. The plan will cover both public and private sectors, especially in relation to critical legal and other infrastructure, he said.
The rapid pace of Thailand’s digitalisation of the economy and society has highlighted cybersecurity concerns, including personal data security. Of particular concern are data leaks on large systems used by banks and other financial institutions. The digitalisation of government services has also led to a higher risk of cyberattacks.
The country also needs more experts with specialised cybersecurity knowledge and to boost public awareness on the issue, as the number of people in Thailand using online government and private sector services is increasing, ETDA said.