The Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK) 20th Foundation Anniversary Online Event and BTK 12th Period IT Specialist Assistants' Initiation Program was held.
The program was attended by Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Adil Karaismailoğlu, Deputy Minister Dr. Ömer Fatih Sayan, BTK President Ömer Abdullah Karagözoğlu, Personal Data Protection Board President Prof. Dr. Faruk Bilir, Türk Telekom General Manager Ümit Önal, Turkcell General Manager Murat Erkan, and Vodafone General Manager Colman Deegan.
Stating that technology has reached a completely different point with the widespread use of the internet, Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Adil Karaismailoğlu said, “Under the leadership of our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey has continued to utilize and dominate information and communication technologies in almost every field—from e-government applications to finance and banking apps, from e-commerce to digital media, from wearable technologies to robotic systems, from social media to virtual reality—with the efforts it has made over the last 19 years. Of course, there is one more thing we must not forget while adapting to what the future brings: our past experiences. Whether good or bad, every event we experience is ultimately a blessing we add to our life’s satchel. As we shape the future, we must definitely use the accumulation of the past. This analytical thinking and structure will reduce our margin of error.”
Minister Karaismailoğlu: Achieving World Standards in Every Field is Very Important for Us
Emphasizing the importance of the 2023 vision for our country, Karaismailoğlu said, “We are talking about the importance of producing locally and nationally, achieving world standards in every field, surpassing them, and ultimately setting standards. Our historical heritage, values, strength, and potential as a nation and people constitute the starting point of this vision. When we look at the developments in the world, we better realize that we need to work without stopping even for a moment. I am not talking about an ambition that leads to arrogance and error. What will take us to the top is determination and perseverance.”
Deputy Minister Sayan: We Understood the Importance of BTK Better on the Night of July 15
Recalling that members of the Gülenist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ) targeted to neutralize BTK during the treacherous coup attempt on July 15, 2016, Deputy Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Sayan said, "We should understand the importance of this institution as follows: on the night of the coup, our President went live through an application, and if this institution could not ensure the continuation of that internet connection or communication, let's think about what would have happened today."
Stating that the National Technology Move initiated under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will position the country as a leader both in its region and in the world, Sayan said, "We are not only predicting the future but also building it, and we will continue to do so."
Emphasizing the importance of domestic and national software applications, Sayan said, "The domestic and national applications we produce will make us stronger. In this regard, the youth of our country need to develop themselves more in software. Learning software is now as important as learning the alphabet. With the 1 Million Programmers project, we will meet the needed human resources in this field. Through the project, students receiving training will specialize in the private sector and information technologies field and can build careers in this sector. This is a very important issue for both our young people who will receive training and our sector."
Stating that some of the newly appointed specialist assistants can be assigned to USOM thanks to their talents, Sayan said, "In today's world where the pandemic is ongoing, individuals, companies, critical infrastructures, and states are under serious cyber threats. In addition to the joint fight against the coronavirus, we need to pay more attention than ever to personal, corporate, and national cyber defense, be more cautious, and increase the measures taken. During this period, many attacks such as phishing and fraud are carried out by cyber attackers and scammers. To prevent cyber attacks, USOM, operating under BTK, continues its activities non-stop with domestically and nationally developed applications KASIRGA, AVCI, and AZAD, intervening in cyber incidents 7/24 to ensure the security of our country's entire communication infrastructure and critical data."
President Karagözoğlu: As BTK, We Are Working to Increase Our Citizens' Satisfaction
BTK President Ömer Abdullah Karagözoğlu also stated that as an institution, they are working to increase citizens' satisfaction. Karagözoğlu said, “Even in the pandemic process we are in, which we hope will end as soon as possible, we made two important regulations and we are working on new regulations. The pandemic process showed us all how vital communication is. During this process, we shared the necessary regulation for contactless delivery with our postal sector. With the amendment made in Law No. 5809, we enabled contracts in electronic environment. Now we are working together with our operators for this new contract environment enabled by the law. I would like to thank all operators who supported the process in your presence.”
Mentioning the second law amendment during the pandemic process, which brought regulations to social media, Karagözoğlu said, “A social media regulation was made here to protect many areas from the privacy of our private life to the protection of our personal data. This law has increased our responsibility even more. With this awareness, as BTK, we will do our best to protect the rights and freedoms of our country and our citizens to the end.”
President Karagözoğlu also spoke about the importance of USOM's work as follows: “The National Cyber Incident Response Center (USOM), established in May 2013, and the Cyber Incident Response Teams (SOME) operating under its coordination against cyber attacks that may affect our country are on high alert 7/24. Our National Cyber Incident Response Center (USOM), equipped with applications we developed entirely with our own resources called KASIRGA, AVCI, and AZAD, works to ensure the security of our country's entire communication infrastructure and critical data.”
Stating that BTK Data Center is a center designed at the world's most recognized top-level standards, Karagözoğlu concluded his speech by mentioning the works they have done for the safe use of the internet.