While recent reports show that some of the government institutions in Sri Lanka were hacked by various individuals or groups, data shows that there have been more than 15 million cyber security threats detected in the country in 2023.
World-renowned multinational cybersecurity and anti-virus provider, Kaspersky this week during a media briefing revealed that its products detected 15 million local incidents on the computers of Kaspersky Security Network (KSN) participants in Sri Lanka in 2023. Overall, 46.7 per cent of users in Sri Lanka were targeted by local threats during this period.
Launching its new flagship product line ‘Kaspersky Next’ on Thursday at the Hilton Colombo Residence, the company said these statistics represent the malicious programmes found directly on users’ computers or removable media connected to them (flash drives, camera memory cards, phones, external hard drives) or that initially made their way onto the computer in non-open form.
Further data shows that additionally, 9.3 million different Internet-borne cyber threats were detected on the computers of KSN participants in Sri Lanka. Overall, 39.5 per cent of users were targeted by web-borne threats during this period.
Web-based threats expose people and computer systems to online harm. This includes well-known threats such as phishing and through the exploitation of vulnerabilities in browsers or infected plugins.
Kaspersky, General Manager for Southeast Asia, Yeo Siang Tiong highlighted, “In Sri Lanka, we observe high incidence of malware spread through removable media such as USB drives. These attacks exploit vulnerabilities in local systems, often bypassing initial digital defenses. On the web front, the majority of attacks are conducted through browsers, leveraging drive-by download tactics that exploit browser and plugin vulnerabilities. Coupled with the rise in social engineering attacks, where users are deceived into downloading seemingly legitimate files, our data underscores the critical need for comprehensive cybersecurity strategies. With Kaspersky Next, we aim to empower Sri Lankan businesses to effectively combat these diverse and sophisticated threats, ensuring robust protection and resilience against cyber intrusion.”
