The 5th ASEAN Ministerial Conference on Cybersecurity (AMCC) was convened virtually on Wednesday.

Singapore's Minister for Communications and Information S. Iswaran said at the opening ceremony that the ministers would discuss building a rules-based cyberspace and strengthening regional cyber resilience through Critical Information Infrastructure (CII) protection at the meeting.

When delivering his opening remarks, Iswaran said ASEAN member states face an unprecedented level of exposure to cyber threats today, as ASEAN's digital economy grows.

"It is more important than ever for ASEAN to tackle the challenge of cybersecurity together in a sustained, holistic and coordinated manner," he said.

The minister called on ASEAN member states to maintain a rules-based international order for a cyberspace that is open, secure, stable, accessible, and peaceful.

He said it will be increasingly challenging to do so, against the backdrop of a volatile and fractious global landscape caused by growing geopolitical tensions as well as rising protectionism.

"Therefore, we have to double down on efforts to create robust rules and engender international collaboration for greater cyber resilience and stability."

He said beyond protecting national CIIs, ASEAN can do more to strengthen regional cyber resilience by safeguarding CIIs with cross-border impact, such as common cloud and banking systems.

Iswaran also said Singapore continues to ramp up its cybersecurity in the areas of Operational Technology (OT) and the Internet of Things (IoT), which are fast-evolving and pose distinctive threats and risks.

He announced that the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA) will establish an OT Cybersecurity Expert Panel (OTCEP) comprising internationally renowned practitioners, to advise government agencies and stakeholders on strategies to enhance the resilience of OT systems.

The minister also announced the launch of the Cybersecurity Labelling Scheme (CLS) by CSA, to strengthen the IoT cybersecurity. The CLS scheme is the first of its kind in the Asia-Pacific.

Iswaran said CSA will work with ASEAN member states and other international partners to establish mutual recognition arrangements for the CLS to enhance security standards of the global IoT device market.