CYBERJAYA: Phishing attacks tremendously affect innocent people to vulnerable risk. With the rising number of unsuspected victims falling into the perpetrator’s trick, Primary Guard‘s Technology Development Manager, Afiq Lamaznun, shared his industrial insight about cybersecurity, phishing attack, and preventive measures against scams on June 4, 2022 at Management & Science University (MSU) Seremban, Negeri Sembilan.
In a webinar titled, Don’t Bite The Bait! How to Avoid Phishing Attacks, Afiq joined other speakers in from the Technological Association Malaysia and Malaysia Board of Technology, who started their session with a brief introduction to cybersecurity by spotlighting cybersecurity awareness month, which is celebrated annually in October.
The rising number of cybercrimes has shifted the online communities’ sentiment, with three out of five online gamers in the United States expressing their apprehension over the fear of lack of security.
As the goal of IT security is to protect digital assets, devices, and services from being disrupted, 53% of people distrust IoT (Internet of Things) to protect their privacy and handle online information. To make matter worse, 34% of US adults do not trust social media companies to safeguard their users’ data.
“This is interconnected with the recent cases of Mark Zuckerberg, where the US court is interrogating him over data breaches. Despite the fact that we have all of these policies, such as the Personal Data Protection Act 2010 (PDPA) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), giant social media companies are still holding users’ data. They have the absolute right to sell our data for their own gain,” Afiq said.
In discussing the apparent reason why cybersecurity awareness is essential, Afiq spotlighted the three consequential cybersecurity threats that are harmful to a business’s digital assets: process, technology, and the human factor.
He continued: “Human factors or people are known as the biggest threats to cybersecurity. If we can create a shift in employees’ mindsets and the potential impact of cyber-attacks, it will enhance organization resilience against multiple types of cyber threats. Despite the rapid growth of cyber security over the last couple of years, organizations need to strengthen their resources to reduce human error and mitigate security risk on daily operations to reduce security breaches”.
He continued his presentation with five types of phishing: First, clone phishing, where scammers replicate an email and include dangerous attachments or links. Second, whaling, where scammers target high-ranking executives to gain access to sensitive data or money. Third, email phishing, where scammers create emails that impersonate legitimate companies and attempt to steal confidential information. Then, there’s spear phishing, which is similar to email phishing, but the only difference is that the messages are more personalized. Lastly, pop-up phishing, where fraudulent pop-ups trick users into installing malware.
Towards the end of his presentation, Afiq emphasized that 95% of cybersecurity breaches are caused by human error. He also shares about ToPhish, a product developed by Primary Guard that helps organizations protect their business’s assets.
In 2012, Primary Guard was a product under Forest Interactive, which started as a sales service for the government sector, Afiq shared. Since its inception in 2019, Primary Guard has been providing innovative solutions in the targeted Asia Pacific countries that assist in limiting the consequences of cyber threats, increase corporate productivity and keep essential functions running.
Click here for more information about Primary Guard products, services, and cyber security solutions, or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
About Primary Guard
Primary Guard is a data protection company that provides security on the cloud, data analytics and disaster recovery as a service (DRaaS). The company helps businesses minimize impact from cyberthreats, improve efficiency and maintain essential functions during or after disaster occurrences. Its innovative solutions offer business owners improved and uninterrupted day-to-day operations, giving them a competitive advantage in the international market. Visit primaryguard.com to learn more.
For more information, please visit primaryguard.com and follow Primary Guard on LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube.