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Ransomware Continues to Pummel Businesses in Southeast Asia, Reveals Kaspersky

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(source: Antoni Shkraba | Pexels)

According to Kaspersky, Southeast Asia (SEA) remains the hotspot for ransomware attacks due to its growing digital economy, among many others, which targets large organizations and SMEs.

The company’s cybersecurity solutions for businesses SEA detected 57,571 ransomware attacks from January to June 2024.

Ransomware targeting businesses in SEA was highest in Indonesia with 32,803 incidents blocked by Kaspersky. Following behind is the Philippines with 15,208 ransomware attacks and Thailand with 4,841 cases. Malaysia came fourth with 3,920 malicious attacks, followed by Vietnam with 692, and Singapore with 107.

Recent high-profile incidents, including those involving the Indonesia National Data Centre, Malaysia’s public transport operator and local health pharmacy chain, the Philippines’ health insurance provider, the famous Singapore restaurant group, and a major brokerage firm and gasoline service company in Vietnam, are evidence of the malicious threat persistently attacking businesses in the region.

“While there are growing global efforts to combat ransomware such No More Ransom initiative, of which Kaspersky is a part of for the eighth consecutive year, and some governments in the SEA region have enacted cybersecurity laws[1][2], while others are working towards the same, it can never be reiterated enough that companies and organizations also have their parts to play to bolster cybersecurity defense,” shared Adrian Hia, Managing Director for Asia Pacific at Kaspersky.

To protect your business from ransomware attacks, Kaspersky’s experts recommend the following:

  1. Always keep software updated on all the devices to prevent attackers from exploiting vulnerabilities and infiltrating the organization’s network. 
  2. Promptly install available patches for commercial VPN solutions providing access for remote employees and acting as gateways in your network.
  3. Back up data regularly and ensure they can be accessed quickly when needed or in an emergency.
  4. Avoid downloading and installing pirated software or software from unknown/unverified sources.
  5. Assess and audit your supply chain and managed services access to your environment. Kaspersky offers compromise assessment services.
  6. Do not expose remote desktop/management services (such as RDP, MSSQL, etc.) to public networks unless absolutely necessary, and always use strong passwords, two-factor authentication, and firewall rules for them.
  7. Monitor access and activity by having visibility over the network to spot any unusual activity, and controlling user access on an as-needed, and as-required basis to minimize risks of unauthorized access and data leak.
  8. Set up a security operation center (SOC) using a SIEM (security information and event management) tool like Kaspersky Unified Monitoring and Analysis Platform, a unified console for monitoring and analyzing information security incidents, and solutions, such as Kaspersky Next XDR Expert, a robust cybersecurity solution that defends against sophisticated cyberthreats.
  9. Use the latest Threat Intelligence information to have an in-depth visibility into cyberthreats targeting your organization and provide your InfoSec professionals with the most comprehensive and up-to-date information regarding potential malicious actors and their TTPs.
  10. Educate employees and improve their cybersecurity literacy through tools, such as the Kaspersky Automated Security Awareness Platform. Employees should be aware of the risks of cybersecurity threats and how to protect themselves and the organization from them.
  11. Employ Kaspersky Professional Services to optimize the workload of your heavily challenged IT department. Kaspersky experts assess the state of your current IT security, then deploy and configure Kaspersky software quickly and properly to ensure hassle-free ongoing performance.
  12. If your company does not have a dedicated IT security function and only has generalist IT admins who may lack the specialist skills required for expert-level detection and response solutions, consider subscribing to a managed service such as Kaspersky MDR. This would instantly boost your security capabilities by an order of magnitude while allowing you to focus on building in-house expertise.
  13. For the protection of very small businesses, use solutions intended to help you manage your cybersecurity even without having an IT administrator on board. Kaspersky Small Office Security provides hands-off security due to ‘install and forget’ protection and saves the budget which is crucial, particularly in the early stages of business development.  

 

Written by
Tech Beat Philippines

Tech Beat Philippines is the social media news platform for all things technology. It is also a part of the GEARS section on Daddy's Day Out.

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