In response to a “heightened threat environment” and a series of coordinated attacks on national infrastructure, the Government of Pakistan’s National Cyber Emergency Response Team (nCERT) has established a 24/7 National Cybersecurity Control Room. This facility, located at nCERT headquarters in Islamabad, serves as the central hub for nationwide incident monitoring, real-time threat analysis, and coordinated response.
Key Strategic Directives
- National Coordination: The control room acts as the primary coordination center for Internet Service Providers (ISPs), Sectoral CERTs (e.g., banking, telecom), and Provincial CERTs. All stakeholders have been ordered to maintain round-the-clock surveillance.
- Focal Points: Senior officials Dr. Muhammad Yousaf (Director CERT) and Dr. Mujahid Shah (Assistant Director, Incident Management) have been appointed to lead national-level coordination.
- Reporting Mandate: All suspicious network activities or confirmed breaches must be reported immediately to nCERT to ensure a unified counter-response, preventing “siloed” defense strategies.
Context of Rising Threats
The move follows several high-profile incidents in early March 2026:
- Satellite & Broadcast Attacks: Coordinated cyberattacks targeted the state-owned satellite, Pak-Sat, causing transmission disruptions for multiple TV channels.
- Geopolitical Tensions: nCERT issued a high-priority alert warning that regional instability is being exploited by state-sponsored hackers and sophisticated Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) actors targeting military and financial networks.
- Psychological Operations: Authorities have cautioned against “deepfake” campaigns and fabricated news designed to spread panic alongside technical intrusions.
National Baseline Security Guidelines
To mitigate risks, nCERT has mandated strict adherence to National Baseline Security Guidelines, which include:
- Email Security: Implementation of SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to prevent phishing.
- Access Control: Mandatory Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) and regular credential resets.
- Infrastructure Defense: Deployment of Web Application Firewalls (WAF) and centralized logging through SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) systems.
- Resilience: Maintaining offline, air-gapped backups and tested disaster recovery failover mechanisms.
