TREND Micro Inc. said its threat-defense experts are anticipating the rise of targeted attack campaigns across Asia Pacific next year.
This comes on the heels of this year’s glut of successful large-scale data breaches targeting victims around the world, the company said in a statement.
According to its annual security predictions report, targeted attacks campaigns will become the norm and continue to multiply next year.
“Noteworthy cases in the United States and China show that targeted attacks have become a preferred means of intelligence gathering for threat actors. The motivations behind these campaigns include obtaining financial information, personal data and classified government data,” the report, titled “Trend Micro Security Predictions for 2015 and Beyond: The Invisible Becomes Visible,” said.
The Tokyo, Japan-headquartered firm said its personnel have already noted attacks against organizations in Vietnam and India, and recently in Malaysia and Indonesia.
“We can expect future attacks in other Apac countries,” the company said.
“What we are seeing today is not a huge surprise. Cybercriminals have increased their velocity and the brutal measures they use to steal information,” Trend Micro Philippines Marketing Director Myla Pilao was quoted in the statement as saying. “Following the success of targeted attacks from Chinese and Russian cybercriminals, many attackers from other countries will regard cyberattacks as a more practical method to grab a foothold in an organization.”
Pilao said they have reason to “presume that data breaches will be essentially regarded as a common offshoot of the present threat landscape, with the incessant barrage of data breaches emerging almost daily.”
“Users should expect that at least one of their accounts, whether on Web services or online portals, will be compromised.”
This is due to the prevalence of social media usage in Apac, which will make users in the region viable targets, Pilao explained.
“Given the predicted increase of attacks next year, cybercriminals will have more opportunities to steal user credentials. As a result, users must become more diligent when it comes to password use and online security.”