Technical assistance in drawing up specifications for adapting “www.cybermalveillance.gouv.fr” to the Lebanese ecosystem and integrating it into a host IT infrastructure.

 

1 – General context and objectives

A continuous dialogue between the European Union and Lebanon has been focussing, for several years, on security and counter-terrorism. Aligned with the European Neighbourhood Policy and the European Union Global Strategy on Foreign and Security Policy, an agreed roadmap addresses the areas of counter-terrorism, justice and law enforcement, countering terrorism financing and violent extremism, among others.

The project “Advance Counter Terrorism for Lebanon security” (2020-2023), led by the Spain´s International and Ibero-American Foundation for Administration and Public Policy (FIIAPP), in consortium with CIVIPOL (France) and Arma di Carabinieri (Italy), aims at reinforcing national capacities in Lebanon to react to the threats of terrorism and organized crime while promoting rule of law and human rights, in line with international standards

Three specific objectives are pursued:

SO 1: Improved national response against terrorism, in line with international standards.

SO 2: Improved cyber-security and protection and response against cyber-terrorism.

SO 3: Improved application of rights-based approach to Counter Terrorism (CT) / Violent Extremism (VE) cases by law enforcement officials and Courts.

The digitalisation of society translates the challenges of terrorism and organized crime into the cyberspace. Therefore, the project counts as its specific objective 2 to enhance protection and response against terrorism and crime through an improved cybersecurity national system.

Under the general supervision and coordination of the Secretary General of the Council of Ministers and the Higher Defence Council, the project include key stakeholders from the Lebanese Law Enforcement Agencies, such as the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), the Internal Security Forces (ISF), the General Security (GS) and the State Security (SS) as well as civil servants of various ministries and public authorities in charge of supervising critical infrastructure operators, in sectors such as Defence, Interior, Telecommunications, Banking, Health and so forth. Besides, Parliamentary Committees, representatives of the National Human Rights Commission and members of Civil Society Organizations will count amongst regular counterparts as well. Finally, partnerships with private companies and Universities will be highly promoted.

Two outputs are expected in the domain of cybersecurity: the enhancement of national capacity to prevent and counter cyber-terrorism and cyber-organized crime, on the one hand, and the increasing of awareness on cybersecurity and cybercrime, on the other hand.

 

 

2 – Description of the assignment

Background

The establishment of an Awareness-raising Platform on cybersecurity and cybercrime, that will “advocate partnership and cooperation between public and private sector, involving representatives of the civil society, universities, and private enterprises”, is one of the expected outcomes of the ACT project in its second component and an important pillar of the national cyber security system in Lebanon.

The Awareness-raising and Assistance Platform will consist of a Digital Web Portal freely accessible to the public, gradually offering a range of structured and multimedia content as well as support and assistance services:

• Inform and raise awareness about digital threats/risks and how to protect against them;
• Assist individuals and organizations who are victims of cyber-malware or cybercrime, in close coordination with the Internal Security Forces and Judicial police;
• Provide information and communication materials for third party organisations who wish to develop their awareness programmes;
• Monitor digital threats of its perimeter on the Lebanese territory and release an annual report and statistics regarding cybercrime offences (national observatory).

The first step of implementation will focus primarily on setting up the online auto-diagnostic tool, which advises users on what action to take in response to an identified threat. 

The Awareness Platform is dedicated to a wide private, public, academics audience, including:

• Individual citizens;
• Small and medium-sized businesses in various economic and social sectors;
• Private institutions (e.g. schools/universities, research institutes);
• Local administrations, municipalities, public institutions;
• Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), etc.

The French government has proposed to the Lebanese government to transfer its entire platform “www.cybermalveillance.gouv.fr” on the open-source model (front office, back office, all content), so that an equivalent of what France is proposing since 2017 can be set up in Lebanon^[1]. ACYMA sent technical documents and provided access to the pre-production platform so that Lebanon could test it.

The implementation of the French platform in Lebanon requires an assessment of the prerequisites and requirements as regards:

• Arabization of “Cybermalveillance” to the Lebanese ecosystem;
• Integration of the platform into the host IT infrastructure.

Arabization includes both the technical and functional adaptation of the French platform in terms of features, and the adaptation/translation of content and modifying content referral by function to match the Lebanese context.

Objective

The purpose of this activity is to assist the Lebanese government in the assessment of the prerequisites and the development of the technical specifications for the Arabization of “cybermalveillance.gouv.fr” to the Lebanese ecosystem and its integration into the host IT infrastructure and validation of hosting prerequisites.

Expected result

Develop hosting prerequisites and technical specifications document for the Arabization of “Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr” to the Lebanese ecosystem and its integration into the chosen host IT infrastructure are defined, which will enable, in a second step, the launching of a tender procedure for the web development, translation and integration work.

 

3 – Course of the assignment

The expert will work closely with the IT team of the entity hosting the awareness platform to draw up specifications for technical integration into the host IT infrastructure.

Specifications for the Arabization of the French platform to suit the Lebanese context (adaptation of functionalities, adaptation/translation of content) will be drawn up on the basis of a needs assessment carried out during a workshop in Lebanon with representatives of the Lebanese administration.

Tasks required

• Study all relevant documentation made available by ACYMA concerning the platform;
• Visit and test the “www.cybermalveillance.gouv.fr” website;
• In-depth testing and evaluation of the pre-production platform;
• Conduct the necessary workshops with all the relevant stakeholders to define the specific needs and requirements for the Arabization of “www.cybermalveillance.gouv.fr” to the Lebanese ecosystem and its integration into the host IT infrastructure. In this workshop the consultant shall clearly identify all functions and their classification by scrolling all interfaces with the Lebanese stakeholders;
• Advise Lebanese stakeholders on:
  • Methodology of technical acquisition;
  • The priority functionalities to be put in place in the first phase of implementation;
  • The size of the operational and technical teams to be set up to run the platform;
  • How the platform can be used and fed by the various ministries involved (e.g. Ministry of Information, Ministry of the Interior, etc.).
• Drawing up technical specifications for phase 1, with a view to a future tendering procedure, including user training and handing-over modalities, and support and maintenance in operations;
• Estimate tender budget for phase 1;
• Assist ACT project in the preparation and finalization of the tender documents, and then in the tendering procedure.

Deliverables and outputs of the mission

• Note summarising the government specific needs and requirements for the Arabization of “www.cybermalveillance.gouv.fr” to the Lebanese ecosystem;
• Technical specifications for the future tender procedure, according to the provided template, including bid technical and financial evaluation criteria;
• Estimate tender budget;
• Activity Report (list of people met, recommendations for implementation, minutes of meetings, etc. – according to the provided template).

NB: the deliverables are to be drafted in English.

 

4 – Location, duration and financing of the assignment

Places of the mission

The mission will be deployed in Beirut, Lebanon.

Preparatory work can be carried out at home.

Some meetings can be held remotely, on-line, where appropriate.

A 5-day mission to Lebanon is planned for an interministerial workshop and specific technical meetings in Beirut at the start of the project.

Period of the mission

The mission will take place from April to June 2024.

The technical specifications shall be finalized by end of May at the latest, with a first preliminary version on 8 May.

Duration of the mission

The estimated duration is 45 working days, including 5 days in Lebanon.

Financial aspects

The expert will receive fees for each working day.

A working day can be invoiced if the expert spends at least seven working hours, excluding any break. STEs are bound by the rules on hours of work in force in the Lebanese administration.

 

5 – Required expertise

Qualifications and skills

Advance academic degree (Master's level or upper) or equivalent experience in information and web technologies.

Mastery of English is a must. Knowledge in other languages in use in Lebanon would be an asset (Arabic, French).

General professional experience

At least 10 years’ professional experience in digital transformation, software design and development, and IT system migration.

Specific professional experience

At least 5 years’ professional experience in project management, technical specifications and website development.

Experience in at least one web platform design and development project for a government institution (hardware software and services), similar to “www.cybermalveillance.gouv.fr”, would be an asset.

Contribution to at least one project in the field of cyber security awareness would be an asset.