The Minister of State for Media Affairs, the official spokesperson for the government, Faisal Shboul, and the head of the National Center for Cyber Security, Ahmed Melhem, held a press conference Sunday evening at the Prime Ministry to discuss Jordan's efforts in the field of cyber security.

Shboul said the “information war” is a feature of this era, in light of the development of technologies and digital communication tools, stressing that when information systems are developing around the world, more countries, organizations, institutions and people become able to penetrate those systems.

Countries, governments, institutions and individuals are exposed to an increasing number of cyberattacks, Shboul said.

He continued that it was found that 27 percent of the cyber attacks in Jordan were classified as ‘complicated.’

“Any person or institution can communicate with the National Center for Cyber Security to report being exposed to any types of breaching, and the center will track down the source of the breach if it occurs,” Shboul said.

A total of 897 cyberattacks targeted Jordan in 2021, according to Shboul. Most of these attacks were classified as complicated, meaning those attacks were either carried out by states and organizations or individuals and amateurs.

For his part, Melhem said that the cyber attacks the center dealt with in 2021 targeted government and military institutions as well as the Royal Hashemite Court (RHC).

Melhem continued, “There are external parties that are constantly trying to target national networks and information systems.”

He stressed that among the main targets of the attacks are the military and security institutions, the financial sector, telecommunications companies, the energy sector, government institutions, and Jordan’s embassies abroad.

“The results of the analysis showed that the parties behind the attempts of cyberattacks are states and groups supported by states, groups linked to terrorist organizations, and cyber crime gangs with the aim of material gain,” Melhem said.

According to Melhem, 34 percent of the cyberattacks which targeted Jordan last year were carried out by individuals, 27 percent were by countries or groups associated with countries, 26 percent were related to cyber crimes, and 13 percent were made by extremist or terrorist organizations.

International and local media as well as websites have reported that a number of Jordanian citizens were targeted by external parties or groups linked to countries using complicated tools, he said.

Melhem also stressed that the attacker or the type of software used in the cyberattack has not been confirmed, and corporate users are alerted to take caution as well as update the operating systems of those phones.

Melhem said: "The National Center for Cyber Security neither confirms nor denies the hacking of some citizens' phones, but we ask that we be contacted to conduct a scientific analysis of the digital evidence."

He added that immediate measures are taken by the National Cyber Security Center in the event that any cyberattacks are detected, and this has already been done in all the attacks that were discovered.

Melhem stressed that no country in the world is able to completely stop cyberattacks, but we have the necessary capabilities to face any cases of breach.