"Ransomware" is increasingly flourishing

At the workshop "Ransomware - An attack method that never gets old" organized by the Department of Information and Communications of Ho Chi Minh City in coordination with the Southern Information Security Association of the Vietnam Information Security Association (VNISA) on June 21, experts warned about the increasingly dangerous and widespread form of ransomware attacks, with ransom demands also increasing, causing damage and greatly affecting the reputation of businesses and users.

Mr. Ngo Vi Dong - Vice President of VNISA, President of the Southern Information Security Association - said that ransomware is a threat to network security, causing heavy financial and reputational damage to businesses. Malware attacks have become a trend, forcing units and businesses to have strict defense solutions.

According to VNISA, in the first 6 months of 2024, a series of ransomware attacks targeted key enterprises in Vietnam. These attacks paralyzed information systems, disrupted operations and business activities, causing huge financial losses. Many enterprises were forced to pay large ransoms to retrieve data and restore the system, losing the trust of customers and partners. The damage was not only economic but also had a long-term impact on the reputation and competitiveness of Vietnamese enterprises in the international arena.

A report by Trend Micro, a Japanese security company, shows that in the first 6 months of this year alone, ransomware attacks increased by 50% compared to 2023. Current attacks mainly steal personal data and sensitive commercial data for extortion. This increases the cost and complexity of the incident, while also posing a greater risk of reputational damage to organizations and businesses.

In particular, attackers are exploring how to use artificial intelligence (AI) to automate and accelerate attacks, creating malware that is more effective than email phishing. Combined with the growth of mobile devices connected to the IoT (Internet of Things) via 5G networks, the possibility of cyberattacks will increase in the future.

Mr. La Manh Cuong - Vice President of Research and Development, General Director of OPSWAT Vietnam - said that the main reason why Vietnamese enterprises become targets of cybercrime is because they have not fully prepared a cyber security defense system to protect critical network systems.

The use of unlicensed software, lack of regular updates, and lack of awareness of cybersecurity make businesses vulnerable to attacks. Therefore, the business community needs to deploy comprehensive security solutions based on the "Zero Trust" philosophy to effectively protect the cybersecurity of businesses.

"Enterprises should simultaneously apply specialized security technologies for critical network systems such as content cleaning and reconstruction (CDR) technology, multi-application malware recognition technology and data leakage prevention (DLP) technology to maximize their network security defense capabilities. These technologies help eliminate threats hidden in files, detect and prevent malware before they have a chance to penetrate the system..." - Mr. Cuong suggested.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/ma-doc-tong-tien-ngay-cang-no-ro-196240621212008565.htm