Symantec to Double Cyber Professionals at Chennai Centre

Symantec on Wednesday said it will double the number of cyber-security professionals at its Chennai centre to more than 200 over the next year, citing an urgent need to augment capacity to address the increasing cyber threats globally.

The Chennai security operation centre (SOC), the company's largest in Asia-Pacific and Japan region, expansion will be part of Symantec's $50 million (roughly Rs. 333 crores) business expansion plan, which also includes the Singapore SOC launched Wednesday.

"We will double our cyber-security expert in the Chennai SOC within one year," Peter Sparkes, senior director of Cyber Security Services at Symantec, told reporters.

Chennai is Symantec's largest security centre in Asia-Pacific and Japan region, which includes Singapore, Tokyo, and Sydney, operating 24 hours a day seven days a week.

"The major expansion in Chennai is largely supported by the highly-skilled technical expertise available in the country," Sparkes said.

Sparkes highlighted the inter-link of the four SOCs in Asia-Pacific and Japan, pointing out that Chennai was operating with support from the other three SOCs as 30 percent of its staff were affected by heavy rains in Chennai.

"There is a synergy in working hours we maintain to support customers in the increasing threat environment today," said Sparkes.

India, according to Symantec executives, was one of the most vulnerable areas to cyber-security. Symatec's SOC monitoring showed Indian had 38,391 cyber threats at noon India time today, or a third of the 97,913 threats across Asia.

With the launch of Singapore SOC, businesses will have access to intelligence, accurate threat detection, and proactive notification of emerging threats to ensure sensitive data is protected, the company said.

Symantec will expand its Tokyo SOC and set up new centres in Europe over the next year.

"Today, technology alone may not stop advanced threats. Organisations need security experts on hand to interpret and prioritise the critical events that need action," said Samir Kapuria, senior vice president and general manager of Cyber Security Services at Symantec.

"By investing in people and security IQ in Singapore and Asia Pacific, Symantec is expanding its visibility into the region, enabling us to bolster customers' security operations capabilities, and protect their critical information and assets," he said.