Bangladesh Defense
Saif
Senior Member
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Date of Event:
Jan 17, 2026
Cyber defense: security imperative
BANGLADESH stands at a turning point where digital transformation and national security intersect more closely than ever before. A rapid progress ion government services, banking, education, health care, industries and defence reflects a bold march towards modernisation. This acceleration into a digital future brings with it a complex set of cyber risks that grow faster than most institutions can handle. Globally, cyber attacks have evolved from isolated incidents into a continuous, borderless threat environment.
Cybersecurity Ventures reports that cyber crime costs increase at an alarming rate of 15 per cent annually and are set to reach $10.5 trillion in 2025 and an estimated $15.6 trillion by 2029. A single data breach now costs nearly $4.44 million on an average while artificial intelligence-powered phishing attacks achieve 50 per cent higher success rates, contributing to more than $17 billion in annual losses.
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, global military expenditure reached $2.718 trillion in 2024, marking the highest level ever recorded and reflecting a year-on-year increase of 9.4 per cent. Major spenders, including the United States, China, Russia, Germany and India, accounted for about 60 per cent of total global defence expenditure, with a growing share allocated to advanced technologies, cyber capabilities and digital resilience. The figures highlight how nations are increasingly prioritising cyber defence as a core component of national security. The world faces a shortage of nearly four million cyber security professionals, leaving critical systems dangerously exposed.
Bangladesh mirrors this global tension in its own digital landscape. With more than 134 million internet users and more than 60 million social media users, the national attack surface is vast and expands daily. Internet banking transactions crossed Tk 1.12 trillion in a single month, demonstrating both the scale of digital adoption and the magnitude of potential risks. The year 2025 alone witnessed 63 million cyber attacks targeting Bangladesh, with financial institutions facing more than 600 attacks every day. The Bangladesh Bank cyber heist, deep fake attempts targeting government figures, ransomware incidents in the pharmaceutical sector and attempts to illegally sell access to the Titas Gas firewall server on the dark web illustrate how deeply cyber threats have embedded themselves into the digital ecosystem.
A study indicates that cyber crimes doubled in Bangladesh in a year, with 40 per cent of victims suffering financial losses and nearly 48 per cent experiencing serious social consequences, including defamation and harassment. National intelligence assessments further show sharp increases in phishing, social engineering, identity fraud and unauthorized access attempts, affecting not only individuals but also critical infrastructure.
While Bangladesh has introduced important initiatives such as the National Cybersecurity Strategy 2021–2025, the Cyber Safety Ordinance 2025 and institutional strengthening through BGD e-Gov CIRT, the National Cyber Security Agency, BTRC’s Digital Safety Directorate, BCSI and cyber crime units under the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime, the Criminal Investigation Department and the Rapid Action Battalion, significant gaps in capacity and capability remain. Many public and private organisations continue to rely heavily on foreign cyber security solutions that are costly, opaque and often poorly aligned with local threat patterns. Universities, despite producing capable engineering graduates, frequently lack specialised teachers, cyber ranges, red-blue team training environments and SOC simulation laboratories necessary for developing real-world defensive expertise. Research efforts remain fragmented and underfunded while collaboration among government bodies, defence institutions, academia and the private sector is still limited.
Against this backdrop, a clear opportunity emerges for Bangladesh to strengthen national cyber-defence through local innovation and skills development. The priority must be building a robust cyber-security work force capable of protecting national infrastructure while reducing dependence on foreign systems. At the same time, Bangladesh must actively support home-grown cyber-security startups and agile innovators who can design solutions tailored to local realities. The global cyber-security market is valued in the hundreds of billions of dollars and there is no structural reason Bangladeshi firms cannot compete within it. Countries such as Singapore, Israel and Malaysia have demonstrated that ecosystem strength, not geographic size, determines success. With the right investments, Bangladesh can position itself as a regional cyber capability hub.
This ambition requires execution through a coordinated national road map focused on education, research, applied training, public-private partnership and sovereign technology development. Such a road map must align closely with national security priorities while ensuring sustained collaboration among key stakeholders.
However, the role of the military, academia and the private sector is central to this effort. Many of the most transformative technologies, including the internet, global positioning system, advanced cryptography and modern communications, originated from defence requirements and later matured through academic research and private-sector innovation. Countries with strong cyber capabilities have institutionalised this tri-sector collaboration. Bangladesh has the foundational elements to pursue a similar model provided these sectors operate with shared intent and long-term vision.
At the same time, regional examples offer important lessons. Pakistan has moved towards centralised cyber governance through the establishment of the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency, aimed at consolidating cyber crime investigation and strengthening sovereign control over digital security enforcement. Pakistan has also introduced the National Cyber Protection Authority to provide strategic oversight of cyber protection, policy coordination and the safeguarding of critical information infrastructure. Together, these institutions reflect Pakistan’s effort to reduce fragmentation in cyber governance, enhance institutional clarity and assert national ownership over digital security, even as operational and capacity challenges persist.
India, by contrast, has developed a more layered and research-driven ecosystem. Institutions such as CERT-In and the National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre play clearly defined roles in incident response and the protection of critical infrastructure. At the strategic level, India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation has invested for decades in local defence and cyber-related technologies, enabling closer alignment between military requirements, academic research, and industrial innovation. This long-term emphasis on domestic research and development has significantly reduced reliance on external systems and strengthened India’s sovereign cyber and defence capabilities under a coordinated national framework. In today’s interconnected world, no advanced technology is built in isolation. The United States achieved cyber dominance through deep integration between defence institutions, universities and private industry while countries such as Malaysia are now pursuing similar paths. Bangladesh possesses the talent, market demand and institutional base to follow suit if all stakeholders move forward together.
Ultimately, the rise of indigenous cyber innovation is not merely a technological goal, It is a matter of national sovereignty, economic resilience and long-term security. A Bangladesh that builds and controls its own cybersecurity capabilities secures not only its digital infrastructure but also its position in the global digital order. With strategic vision and coordinated action, the country can evolve from a reactive defender into a confident contributor to global cyber security.
Brigadier General Mohammad Shahjahan Majib is dean of the electronic and communication engineering at the Military Institute of Science and Technology; and Shamsad Binte Ehsan is a cyber security specialist at the MIST Cyber Range.
BANGLADESH stands at a turning point where digital transformation and national security intersect more closely than ever before. A rapid progress ion government services, banking, education, health care, industries and defence reflects a bold march towards modernisation. This acceleration into a digital future brings with it a complex set of cyber risks that grow faster than most institutions can handle. Globally, cyber attacks have evolved from isolated incidents into a continuous, borderless threat environment.
Cybersecurity Ventures reports that cyber crime costs increase at an alarming rate of 15 per cent annually and are set to reach $10.5 trillion in 2025 and an estimated $15.6 trillion by 2029. A single data breach now costs nearly $4.44 million on an average while artificial intelligence-powered phishing attacks achieve 50 per cent higher success rates, contributing to more than $17 billion in annual losses.
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, global military expenditure reached $2.718 trillion in 2024, marking the highest level ever recorded and reflecting a year-on-year increase of 9.4 per cent. Major spenders, including the United States, China, Russia, Germany and India, accounted for about 60 per cent of total global defence expenditure, with a growing share allocated to advanced technologies, cyber capabilities and digital resilience. The figures highlight how nations are increasingly prioritising cyber defence as a core component of national security. The world faces a shortage of nearly four million cyber security professionals, leaving critical systems dangerously exposed.
Bangladesh mirrors this global tension in its own digital landscape. With more than 134 million internet users and more than 60 million social media users, the national attack surface is vast and expands daily. Internet banking transactions crossed Tk 1.12 trillion in a single month, demonstrating both the scale of digital adoption and the magnitude of potential risks. The year 2025 alone witnessed 63 million cyber attacks targeting Bangladesh, with financial institutions facing more than 600 attacks every day. The Bangladesh Bank cyber heist, deep fake attempts targeting government figures, ransomware incidents in the pharmaceutical sector and attempts to illegally sell access to the Titas Gas firewall server on the dark web illustrate how deeply cyber threats have embedded themselves into the digital ecosystem.
A study indicates that cyber crimes doubled in Bangladesh in a year, with 40 per cent of victims suffering financial losses and nearly 48 per cent experiencing serious social consequences, including defamation and harassment. National intelligence assessments further show sharp increases in phishing, social engineering, identity fraud and unauthorized access attempts, affecting not only individuals but also critical infrastructure.
While Bangladesh has introduced important initiatives such as the National Cybersecurity Strategy 2021–2025, the Cyber Safety Ordinance 2025 and institutional strengthening through BGD e-Gov CIRT, the National Cyber Security Agency, BTRC’s Digital Safety Directorate, BCSI and cyber crime units under the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime, the Criminal Investigation Department and the Rapid Action Battalion, significant gaps in capacity and capability remain. Many public and private organisations continue to rely heavily on foreign cyber security solutions that are costly, opaque and often poorly aligned with local threat patterns. Universities, despite producing capable engineering graduates, frequently lack specialised teachers, cyber ranges, red-blue team training environments and SOC simulation laboratories necessary for developing real-world defensive expertise. Research efforts remain fragmented and underfunded while collaboration among government bodies, defence institutions, academia and the private sector is still limited.
Against this backdrop, a clear opportunity emerges for Bangladesh to strengthen national cyber-defence through local innovation and skills development. The priority must be building a robust cyber-security work force capable of protecting national infrastructure while reducing dependence on foreign systems. At the same time, Bangladesh must actively support home-grown cyber-security startups and agile innovators who can design solutions tailored to local realities. The global cyber-security market is valued in the hundreds of billions of dollars and there is no structural reason Bangladeshi firms cannot compete within it. Countries such as Singapore, Israel and Malaysia have demonstrated that ecosystem strength, not geographic size, determines success. With the right investments, Bangladesh can position itself as a regional cyber capability hub.
This ambition requires execution through a coordinated national road map focused on education, research, applied training, public-private partnership and sovereign technology development. Such a road map must align closely with national security priorities while ensuring sustained collaboration among key stakeholders.
However, the role of the military, academia and the private sector is central to this effort. Many of the most transformative technologies, including the internet, global positioning system, advanced cryptography and modern communications, originated from defence requirements and later matured through academic research and private-sector innovation. Countries with strong cyber capabilities have institutionalised this tri-sector collaboration. Bangladesh has the foundational elements to pursue a similar model provided these sectors operate with shared intent and long-term vision.
At the same time, regional examples offer important lessons. Pakistan has moved towards centralised cyber governance through the establishment of the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency, aimed at consolidating cyber crime investigation and strengthening sovereign control over digital security enforcement. Pakistan has also introduced the National Cyber Protection Authority to provide strategic oversight of cyber protection, policy coordination and the safeguarding of critical information infrastructure. Together, these institutions reflect Pakistan’s effort to reduce fragmentation in cyber governance, enhance institutional clarity and assert national ownership over digital security, even as operational and capacity challenges persist.
India, by contrast, has developed a more layered and research-driven ecosystem. Institutions such as CERT-In and the National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre play clearly defined roles in incident response and the protection of critical infrastructure. At the strategic level, India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation has invested for decades in local defence and cyber-related technologies, enabling closer alignment between military requirements, academic research, and industrial innovation. This long-term emphasis on domestic research and development has significantly reduced reliance on external systems and strengthened India’s sovereign cyber and defence capabilities under a coordinated national framework. In today’s interconnected world, no advanced technology is built in isolation. The United States achieved cyber dominance through deep integration between defence institutions, universities and private industry while countries such as Malaysia are now pursuing similar paths. Bangladesh possesses the talent, market demand and institutional base to follow suit if all stakeholders move forward together.
Ultimately, the rise of indigenous cyber innovation is not merely a technological goal, It is a matter of national sovereignty, economic resilience and long-term security. A Bangladesh that builds and controls its own cybersecurity capabilities secures not only its digital infrastructure but also its position in the global digital order. With strategic vision and coordinated action, the country can evolve from a reactive defender into a confident contributor to global cyber security.
Brigadier General Mohammad Shahjahan Majib is dean of the electronic and communication engineering at the Military Institute of Science and Technology; and Shamsad Binte Ehsan is a cyber security specialist at the MIST Cyber Range.
