Israel-US sign cybersecurity agreement

Israel and the United States signed Aug. 23 the first agreement for cyber-financial cooperation. An announcement by Israel’s Finance Ministry said the memorandum of understanding, signed with the US Department of Treasury, will contribute to strengthening the long-standing relationship and cooperation between the two countries, establishing a bilateral partnership to protect critical financial infrastructure and emerging technologies.

Reportedly, the new agreement includes three main domains of cooperation.

First and foremost, the memorandum envisages sharing of financial cyber information between agencies on both sides, including cybersecurity regulations and guidance, cybersecurity incidents and cybersecurity threat intelligence. A second domain covered by the agreement is mutual staff training and the sharing of methodologies, to strengthen the cyber resilience of financial institutions. The third domain covers competency-building activities, including joint cross-border cyber-financial exercises. The first drill is expected to take place later this year, practicing the resilience of financial institutions in the face of a cyberattack from entities that threaten to damage the immunity of the states’ financial systems.

A joint task force is expected to launch a series of meeting and exchanges between technical experts, on policy, regulation and outreach to support fintech innovations designed to increase cyberprotection and advance global compliance with international standards on anti-money laundering and counterterrorist financing. Israel and the United States are aiming not only to enhance cybersecurity cooperation bilaterally, but also expand global cooperation on this issue.