CYBERJAYA: There are various cybersecurity-related risks that could jeopardise businesses these days if the importance of cybersecurity is ignored, CyberSecurity Malaysia’s (CSM) chief executive officer, Datuk Dr Amiruddin Abdul Wahab said today.
Currently, he said cybersecurity is being perceived as a cost rather than an investment.
Such a mindset should change, he said, adding that having a good security system is not only crucial for businesses to be secured but will also able to instil confidence among its stakeholders.
“Businesses cannot ignore cybersecurity issues, especially now that we are all talking about the Fourth Industrial Revolution, where industries are trying to adapt to fast-changing technologies,” he told Bernama in a special interview at the agency’s new building in Cyberjaya.
Hence, cybersecurity should be a default feature in all businesses regardless of the size, and not as an afterthought, he stressed.
However, that does not mean that Malaysia would be isolated from cybercriminals, but having a secure cyber space would reduce the impact of potential cyber attacks that are getting more sophisticated day by day, he added.
“Even though Malaysia has expertise (in cyber security) and good infrastructure, this does not mean we can avoid threats from malware, and this includes the United States, a country which has sophisticated technology.
“Because of this sophistication, we are favoured by criminals. Of course, they won’t go to countries with under-developed infrastructure, with slow broadband,” he explained.
According to CSM’s general incident classification statistics, there were nine categories of cybercrime, namely content related, cyber harassment, denial of services, fraud, intrusion, intrusion attempt, malicious code, spam and vulnerabilities report.
Out of 2,977 total reports received from January-April this year, fraud was the highest with 1,963 reports, followed by malicious code (390), intrusion (339), content related (100), cyber harassment (88), spam (37), intrusion attempt (34), vulnerabilities report (21), and denial of services (five).
In 2018, reports related to fraud was the highest at 5,123, followed by intrusion attempt (1,805), and malicious code (1,700).
According to Microsoft’s Security Intelligence Report released recently, Malaysia continues to be an attractive region for cybercriminals although businesses had capitalised on the latest security intelligence and protections to stay ahead in the evolving cybersecurity landscape.
With the rise in the value of cryptocurrency, such as Bitcoin, cybercriminals seeking illicit profits have turned to malware that lets them use victims’ computers to mine cryptocurrency coins, said the report.
Amiruddin said Malaysia is among the countries in Asean that has advanced infrastructure in terms of Internet penetration, coupled with high bandwidth.
CSM’s digital forensics lab is the most experience lab and the first in Asia-Pacific to be recognised by the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors, the same body that accredited the United States-Federal Bureau of Investigation’s lab.
Established in 2005, CSM provides specialised cybersecurity services, namely Cyber Security Responsive Services, Cyber Security Proactive Services, Outreach and Capacity Building, Strategic Study and Engagement and Industry and Research Development.
CSM officially reports to the Communications and Multimedia Ministry. -- BERNAMA