US-ASEAN Business Council Hosts Cybersecurity Workshop in Kuala Lumpur to Strengthen Malaysia’s Digital Resilience Amid Emerging Technologies
(Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) The US-ASEAN Business Council (USABC) hosted a multi-stakeholder cybersecurity workshop in Kuala Lumpur titled “Securing Malaysia’s Digital Future: Navigating Cybersecurity Policy Against the Backdrop of Emerging Technologies.” The session brought together senior Malaysian cybersecurity officials, U.S. technology leaders, and industry stakeholders to advance public-private dialogue on the intersection of cybersecurity policy and the governance of emerging technologies.
The workshop marks USABC’s first cybersecurity-focused engagement in Malaysia and serves as the inaugural event of its year-long 2025 cybersecurity program. With Malaysia’s digital economy reaching USD 31 billion in 2024 and national digital investments totaling MYR 163.6 billion, the country is rapidly emerging as a regional leader in ASEAN’s digital development. This makes it a timely and strategic moment to deepen discussions on cybersecurity and digital governance.
In her opening remarks, USABC’s Chief Country Representative for Malaysia, Ms. Tina Jamaluddin, reaffirmed the Council's commitment to cybersecurity as a strategic priority for the region. She underscored information and communications technology (ICT) as USABC's largest and most active portfolio, emphasizing the importance of sustained public-private dialogue and highlighting the role of U.S. industry in supporting Malaysia’s digital ambitions.
USABC was honored to host Ir. Dr. Megat Zuhairy Megat Tajuddin, Chief Executive Officer of the National Cyber Security Agency (NACSA), as the Workshop’s Guest of Honor. Keynote remarks were also delivered by U.S. Ambassador to Malaysia Edgard D. Kagan and Mr. Vishal Patwari, Head of Risk for Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand at Visa. The panel featured esteemed speakers including Mr. Wan Murdani Wan Mohamad from the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC); Datuk Ts. Dr. Mohamed Sulaiman Sultan Suhaibuddeen of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC); Dr. Waqas Khalid of Payments Network Malaysia (PayNet); and Mr. Wan Roshaimi Wan Abdullah from CyberSecurity Malaysia (CSM). We are deeply grateful for their valuable insights on cyber risk management, social engineering, AI-driven fraud prevention, and sector-specific strategies to strengthen digital resilience across finance, enterprise technology, and critical infrastructure.
The workshop concluded with strong momentum from both government and industry participants to continue solution-oriented engagement aimed at enhancing Malaysia’s cybersecurity resilience and advancing an inclusive digital future. USABC extends its sincere thanks to Visa, Cisco Systems, and Amazon Web Services for their generous support in making the workshop possible.