“Cybercrime has already become a new business form.” That, in essence, is how the chief security advisor of a leading tech firm described the rising trend of cybercrime-as-a-service (CaaS) in the Philippines.
In a press statement, Abbas Kudrati, Microsoft’s chief cybersecurity advisor for Asia-Pacific, reported that cyberattacks are fast becoming an organized crime in the country with at least 21 local firms falling victim to a cybercriminal’s new modus — ‘double extortion’, whereby stolen data remains in the dark web even after companies have paid the ransom.
Citing data from the 2022 Global Threat Report, Kudrati says six companies have already fallen prey to criminals in 2021 and another 15 have also been victimized this year. These companies are from various sectors including finance, automobiles, retail and real estate.
“They will take the money from you and then make more money by sending that same data to others,” said Kudrati as he tried to explain the concept of double extortion. In the same breadth, he also warned companies against enterprising cyberhackers or those who create organized supply chains to steal and sell corporate data.
“After all, with just a couple of hundred dollars, cyberhackers can easily buy a ransomware kit off the dark web,” he said. Ransomware means that a hacker is able to hold an entity’s data or system hostage until a ransom is paid.
The basics of cyberattacks explained
According to Kudrati, multiple players are usually asked to join and perform specific roles to make sure that the cyberattack becomes successful. One would be responsible for the creation of the ransomware, another one would be tasked with the distribution of the kits and another person will be responsible for launching the attack. Finally, there’d be another group assigned to sell the stolen data.
The cyberhackers will then ask the victims to pay for their data to be released. Despite negotiations with the companies, the hackers would still sell the data to other entities.
He then went on to say that cybersecurity work is pretty much like a cricket match. “If you are on the defensive — i.e., on the batting side — your job is to fend off attacks from the opposing team’s bowler. The attacker can send several balls your way – they have almost all the time in the world to keep coming at you. But if you are the defender, you only have to miss one ball and you’re already out of the game. That’s why it’s important for us to be constantly refining and improving our skills,” he said.
The usual entry point for cyberattacks
The usual entry point for ransomware attacks is through a malicious email, which cyber attackers can then use to access private data. “They’re so quick and sophisticated they can do it in just one hour and twelve minutes on average,” Kudrati says. Microsoft, he adds, is usually able to block around 710 million global phishing emails weekly but this might not be enough.
For his part, Dale Jose, National Technology and Security Officer of Microsoft Philippines, highlighted the need for companies to practice “cyber hygiene” or the practice of enabling multifactor authentication and using modern antimalware and data protection.
He also urged the government to establish consistent security baselines for critical infrastructures such as the transportation, energy, water, banking & finance, and telecommunications industries. “No matter how much digitalization you do, if you do not have a solid cybersecurity foundation, it will hinder its growth,” Jose said.
In the latest Statista report, it was revealed that the number of cyberattacks in the country had become exponential during the first quarter of 2022, reaching as much as around 1.76 million — a significantly higher figure compared to the 98.41 thousand cyberattacks reported in the Philippines as of June 2021.
The report adds, “Not only has cybercrime become incredibly sophisticated in recent years, but in 2020, most people were online, working from home, and relying on technology and digital services. All of this is happening amid the uncertainty and disruption of a global pandemic. The risks to individuals, companies, organizations, and governments have never been greater.”