Telecoms giant BT has opened Northern Ireland's first-ever Security Operations Centre (SOC) in Belfast.

Located at the firm's flagship Riverside Tower building in the city, the SOC will leverage BT's global security expertise and leading cyber technologies to defend public and private sector bodies against the latest threats.

The significant investment by BT into the 40 seat centre of excellence, follows the award of a £6.3 million contract from the Department of Finance for the provision of a Security Information Event Management (SIEM) and SOC managed services. The SOC will provide 24/7 management 365 days a year for ICT assets across the Northern Ireland Civil Service.

The new specialist centre is designed to support growth in the company's UK customer base providing up to the highest levels of security classification. The SOC in Riverside Tower forms part of a wider multi-million pound investment by BT in the building. Currently all 11 floors are undergoing significant refurbishment to create a future-fit workplace for approximately 1,800 colleagues, with the final floors being complete in early 2023.

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Paul Murnaghan, Regional Director for BT's Enterprise business in Northern Ireland, said: "Each day, millions of people around the world rely on BT's expertise in cyber security to ensure they can go about their lives and run their businesses safely.

"Our investment in the opening of BT's Security Operations Centre in Belfast is significant and we look forward to working with the Northern Ireland Civil Service in this partnership to deliver the most effective cyber support for the public sector here.

"Using a wealth of talent from local cyber experts, the SOC will help to tackle the unprecedented challenges of sophisticated cyber threats. As an increasing number of public services are delivered online, our partnership with central government will help to ensure that the public can trust the services that they access and that the data they provide is secure and protected."

Paul Duffy, Director of Enterprise Shared Services added: "Protecting the cyber security of government IT and infrastructure is vital. The service provided by BT plays an important role in gathering intelligence on cyber threats and enables the Civil Service to enhance its capacity to help defend and protect our IT systems and essential public services we deliver."