Revealing Asia’s Cybersecurity Achilles Heel in the Digital Age
As businesses globally scramble to bulletproof their operations against a new breed of online threats, a report uncovers a troubling gap in the APJ region's cyber defenses, particularly against malicious scripts, account takeovers, and bot attacks. This vulnerability poses significant risks to the integrity and security of business data. It highlights the critical need for robust cybersecurity strategies.
Akamai Technologies' recent report “From Bad Bots to Malicious Scripts: The Effectiveness of Specialized Defenses," underscores the APJ businesses' hesitance in adopting third-party specialized defenses, rendering them more susceptible to cyber-attacks than their global counterparts.
“Malicious bots, scripts, and account takeover attacks are pervasive and will continue to pose ever greater challenges for businesses,” Reuben Koh, director of security technology and strategy at Akamai, explained.
The report's findings are an eye-opener for businesses, particularly in the APJ region. For instance, in Account Takeover (ATO), 73% of companies acknowledged being attacked within the past year. This high incidence of breaches is compounded by the fact that APJ shows the lowest deployment rate for solutions designed to combat such threats, standing at a mere 60% compared to the global average of 83%.
The situation is similarly dire when it comes to script protection. With just 67% of APJ businesses employing specialized script protection solutions, they remain significantly exposed to threats, especially considering that 78% report being targeted by malicious scripts in the preceding year. The importance of addressing these threats escalates with the impending PCI DSS 4.0 regulation, demanding stringent protective measures for account data.
Malicious bots present another battlefield where APJ is lagging. While 64% of businesses in the region faced bot attacks in the previous 12 months, the silver lining globally is the 97% improvement reported by companies in combating bots, thanks to third-party solutions.
Audience hijacking, a menace leading to direct revenue losses for online retailers due to diverted consumer purchases, is known to 92% of APJ organizations, with 26% having experienced it firsthand. The repercussions are tangible, with increased cart abandonment and affiliate fraud being the primary consequences.
"Adopting third-party specialized defenses not only helps organizations to adapt but also addresses the ever-changing attack techniques employed by cybercriminals. This also allows organizations to achieve stronger effectiveness at mitigating these pervasive online threats while reducing overall risk for the business," Koh added.
Image credit: iStockphoto/BartekSzewczyk
