People are the weakest links in cybersecurity, says CSM

IF you love posting about your life on social media, CyberSecurity Malaysia (CSM) has this reminder – sharing is caring, but oversharing is careless.

At least, that is CSM chief executive officer Datuk Dr Amirudin Abdul Wahab’s take on why cybercrimes like fraud, identity theft and so on are persistent in Malaysia.

The habit of oversharing information in Malaysia compromises users to danger.

“They say sharing is caring. But oversharing is careless.

“On social media, many people share too much information, including venting their problems. Such posts are also made public.

“But they should remember this – if you have problems, face it. Don’t Facebook it,” Dr Amirudin quips.

The oversharing of information can expose users to cyber criminals who may use such data to their advantage.

Gaining knowledge of a user’s personal information, cyber criminals can use social engineering methods to commit offences like impersonation and fraud.

While Malaysia is ranked third among 193 countries in terms of commitment to cybersecurity, the people are still lackadaisical about protecting themselves online.

“People are the weakest links in exposing themselves to cyber criminals. Some are also easily enticed by emails saying they won one million ringgit and click on a malicious link,” he says.

With the higher connectivity we enjoy today, he laments that people forget that it is a double-edged sword.

“The number of active Internet users here has exceeded 22 million.

“This has brought great social and economic benefits to the nation but it has also heralded an unwelcome trend of cybercrime,” Dr Amirudin says.

There’s no denying the growing importance for cybersecurity, which is a global concern.

In line with this, the CSM will be bringing together cybersecurity players from about 30 countries to drive innovation growth in this field.

They will be organising its 10th CyberSecurity Malaysia Awards, Conference and Exhibition, to be held from Sept 24 to 28 at the Royale Chulan Kuala Lumpur.

Dr Amirudin says the event will provide a neutral platform for participants, speakers and delegates from countries like USA, Russia and China to discuss cybersecurity issues.

“In this event, we hope to highlight best practices in the industry.

“We will also be having training programmes whereby individuals and corporations can enhance their abilities in the field of cybersecurity to overcome widespread cyber threats.

“For local entities, this training is claimable under the Human Resource Development Fund, so we encourage organisations to send their staff for this course,” he says.

For more information on the event, log on to www.csm-ace.my