Parliament has accepted the Cyber Security Bill and referred it to committee for further review and consideration.

The bill was introduced and accepted during Monday's sitting before being sent to the relevant parliamentary committee for detailed examination.

One of its key objectives is to establish a legal framework to strengthen and safeguard the country's cyber environment. The bill also seeks to identify and address both domestic and cross-border cybersecurity threats while preventing cyber incidents.

The proposed law outlines security standards for critical information infrastructure and systems within the public sector.

A major provision of the bill is the establishment of a National Cyber Security Agency, which would operate under the Ministry of Homeland Security, Labour and Technology. The agency would be overseen by a five-member board and would serve as the country's principal body on cybersecurity matters.

The bill also sets out licensing requirements and penalties related to cybersecurity services. Under the proposed framework, private entities providing certain cybersecurity services would be required to obtain licences, while unauthorised service providers could face fines ranging from MVR 50,000 to MVR 500,000.