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The President of Petrobras, Maria das Graças Silva Foster [pictured] said yesterday (September 18), at a public hearing at the Senate, that the company will invest R$ 4 billion (US$ 1.78 billon) in 2013 and R$ 21.2 billion (US$ 9.45 billion) between 2013-2017 in Information Technology and Telecommunications.

According to Silva Foster, the huge investment demonstrates the importance the company attaches to protecting its strategic information. "At Petrobras, from the moment we walked in the company, we have a culture of information security," she said.

During the joint hearing with the Parliamentary Commission for the Espionage Inquiry and the Economic Affairs and Foreign Relations committees in the Senate, the President explained that the company had constantly monitored and protected its information. As an example, she cited the quantity of emails that are preemptively blocked. "Between August 09 and September 09 we received 195.9 million e-mails. Of these, 16.5 million arrived at their destination," she remarked.

Graça Foster said that Petrobras has an Integrated Data Processing Center, which has restricted access, and that the company's strategic information does not go through the internet. "The company's knowledge is held at the Data Processing Center. Critical information is stored in an encrypted closed system. Access to the center is controlled with biometrics, weighing and monitoring with cameras," she said. The President added that, despite working with partner companies and suppliers, only Petrobras holds all the information, only allowing the company to read them. Additionally, Petrobras has contracts that provide for confidentiality.

On reports in the media that the United States National Security Agency (NSA) has targeted Petrobras through espionage, the President said no violation of Petrobras systems had been recorded, but the presence of the company's name in reports has created "discomfort". "Systems used by Petrobras are among the most advanced on the market" emphasizing that investment in information security should be set to follow technological developments," she commented.