Singapore is planning to cut off web access for public servants as a defence against potential cyber attack - a move closely watched by critics who say it marks a retreat (倒退) for a technologically advanced city-state that has trademarked the term "smart nation".

Some security experts say the policy, due to be in place by May, risks damaging productivity among civil servants and those working at more than four dozen statutory (法定的) boards, and cutting them off from the people they serve. It may only raise slightly the defensive walls against cyber attack. they say.

Ben Desjardins. director of security solutions at network security firm Radware, called it "one of the more extreme measures I can recall by a large public organisation to fight cyber security risks". Stephen Dane, a Hong Kong-based managing director at networking company Cisco Systems, said it was "a most unusual situation" and Ramki Thurimella. chair of the computer science department at the University of Denver, called it both "unprecedented (前所未有的) "and "'a little excessive (过分的) ". One 23-year-old manager, who gave only her family name. Netagale, said blocking web access would only harm productivity and may not stop attacks. "Information may leak through other means, so blocking the Internet may not stop the unavoidable from happening." she said.

But other cyber security companies said that with the kind of threats governments face today. Singapore had little choice but to restrict Internet access.

FireEye, a cyber security company, found that organisations in south-east Asia were 80% more likely than the global average to be hit by an advanced cyber attack.

Singapore officials said no particular attack led to the decision but noted a leakage of one ministry in 2015. David Koh, CEO of the newly formed Cyber Security Agency, said officials realized there was too much data to secure and the threat "is too real".

【语篇导读】本文是一篇议论文。作者介绍了新加坡政府想断开公务员的网络连接以防止网络攻击的出现。