Cybercriminals continue to target manufacturers from the Asia Pacific region for two consecutive years, according to IBM’s 2024 X-Force Threat Intelligence Index. Asia-Pacific accounted for 23% of all incidents globally, making it the third most-targeted geography in 2023.
APAC findings
The study revealed that the manufacturing industry was most targeted in APAC (46%), followed by finance and insurance (12%) and transportation industries (12%).
Further, cyberattackers in APAC commonly used malware(45%), ransomware (17%), and info stealers (10%). The most common impacts on the region were brand reputation (27%) and data theft ( 27%).
Phishing (36%), exploitation of public-facing applications (35%), use of valid accounts (12%), abuse of trusted relationships (12%), and replication through removable media (12%) are the most common access vectors in the region.
“‘AI-engineered attacks’ are receiving more attention due to the rise of generative AI in the current landscape, but the biggest security threat in the Asia Pacific remains known unpatched vulnerabilities,” observed Catherine Lian, general manager & Technology Leader at IBM ASEAN.
Holistic security approach
“The exploitation of user identity is becoming a preferred weapon of choice for global threat actors, raising the need for more effective user access control strategies in the region and prompting us to promote a holistic approach to security in the age of generative AI,” says Lian.
She says organisations must conduct stress tests and establish incident response plans to strengthen the region’s critical infrastructure and key industries such as manufacturing, finance and insurance, and transportation.