This year’s March 21, a massive data breach struck Japan’s Toyota Motor Corporation, compromising 3.1 million clients’ personal information. Only a few days ago, a whooping 100,000 Singapore’s top classified defense personnel’s personal information got leaked out.

Closer to home, Indonesia experienced 205 million cyberattacks back in 2018 caused by WannaCry ransomware – resulting in over $34 billion losses. The stories are similar – these attacks rendered identification details, email, residential addresses, names, occupation details and other personal information vulnerably exposed to the public.

How Serious Are Cyberattacks?

Try typing in “cybersecurity” or “cyberattack” within your search engine and you’ll find over millions of reports happening across not only in ASEAN countries but in the rest of the world. No corporations in any country are safe from this ever-evolving, sophisticated assault operated by highly intelligent cybercriminals as our technology grows stronger.

Cybersecurity, according to the Economic Times, simply means the technique of protecting computers, networks, programs and data from unauthorised access aimed for exploitation. Similar to your house being broken in by a burglar, your personal information can be used for illegal purposes if they fall in the wrong hands.

Hence, cyberattacks are no light matter as they are identified as the fourth or fifth most serious risks faced by large multinational corporations recorded by World Economic Forum 2019 Global Risk Report. The losses can be in the millions, and the numbers are growing.

Top companies that are at high risk of cyberattacks are from healthcare, hospitality, retail (especially e-commerce), manufacturing, education (universities), aviation industries and plantation. Is your company listed among one of them?

What Can You Do To Protect Your Data

Before it is too late, here are some simple steps you can adopt to mitigate every possibility of a cybersecurity attack:

No. 1: Do Not Ever, Share Your Personal Details To An Unknown Source

Cybercriminals are looking out for easy targets. With every chance they get, they will try to infiltrate your system to obtain your database or personal information such as credit card numbers or identification details using either fake caller IDs or illegitimate social media accounts.  So, don’t give out your details to anyone easily!

No. 2:  Do Not Click and Open Pop-ups, Foreign Emails, And Website Links

We repeat, if they look suspicious -do not open. You can be easily exposed to malware and dangerous viruses through phishing that can wipe out your computer data in a split second. Employ the latest email authentication technology that will block these sites or pop-up.

No. 3: Make Sure You Connect To A Secure Network

The majority of data breaches occur due to weak and insecure networks. Try to avoid connecting to public Wi-Fi where anyone can intercept it easily. Use your virtual private network (VPN) provided by your company, especially if you are going away on a business trip or working remotely.

No. 4: Have You Updated Your Security Softwares To The Latest Versions?

Your operating systems and web browsers must be equipped with the most updated protection. Whenever the need for updated antivirus or anti-malware protection arises, you should install them as soon as you can to defend against malicious cyber threats.

No. 5:  Create A Strong Password Reinforced With More Authentication Processes

Why do you want to make it easy for hackers? Use a password with at least 10 characters and ensure that it has numbers, symbols, capital, and lowercase or uppercase letters. If possible, do change your password regularly. Add in another layer of protection by using multi-factor authentication such as using a temporary code sent to your mobile phone to log in.

No 6: Back-Up, Back-Up And Back Up Your Files

Need we emphasise more? Uncertainty can happen, and in this case, the cyberattacks. To make sure you don’t lose all of your data, be sure to perform the backup exercise, either on an external hard drive, cloud or any other device that can operate offline, at least once a week.

No. 7: Implement Limited Access Or Third Party Control

Not everyone in your company should have access to certain documents or files without proper authorisation. Research suggests a high probability of these attacks happening from within the company, which means your employee could be the culprit. Remember to adhere to strict compliance rules on how sensitive information should be stored and shared.

While these attacks may seem unstoppable, every effort from both the employers and employees go a long way into preventing them from happening.

Do you think your company data is well protected? Discover more of our upcoming tips here.