DF Cyber Defense drill within the framework of Smart Banking 2022. — Photo mic.gov.vn

HÀ NỘI — Online phishing attacks continue to increase in many sophisticated forms. Most scammers target financial institutions and banks.

Data from the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) shows that the agency received more than 4,000 reports from internet users about fraudulent activities in the first half of this year.

Of these, more than 95 per cent target the banking and finance sectors. Notably, as banks undergo deeper digital transformation, cybersecurity risks also increase.

The report from the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) also noted that there were 9,519 cyber attacks in the first seven months of this year in Việt Nam, causing incidents to information systems.

Accordingly, the centre has blocked 926 fraudulent websites, including many pages impersonating banks and financial institutions.

Phan Việt Linh, Director of CDNetworks Việt Nam, said that banks currently often face attacks on Layer 3/4, Layer 7 DDoS, and web applications with a variety of attack methods.

CDNetworks statistics show that more than 87 per cent of attacks combine two or more attack methods. Additionally, the banking system also faces the risk of slow connectivity with global applications, which greatly affects the customer experience.

NCS Technologies recorded that the number of websites of State agencies with the domain name .gov.vn and some educational organisations with the domain name .edu.vn that were attacked, infiltrated, and inserted with advertising codes for gambling and betting by hackers reached nearly 400 websites in the first half of this year.

This is a particularly alarming number because not only can hackers insert advertising links, but when they control the system, they can steal databases, including users' personal data, and might even post malicious content or links that spread malicious code in the near future, said Vũ Ngọc Sơn, NCS Technology Director.

Enhancing multi-layer security

Trần Đăng Khoa, Deputy Director of the Authority of Information Security (AIS) under the MIC, said that agencies, businesses, and users are increasingly applying information technology and services on the internet.

In particular, the banking and finance industry plays a "lifeblood" role in the economy, greatly impacting macroeconomic stability, said Phan Việt Linh, director of CDNetworks Việt Nam.

With a vast amount of member and customer data, the security of customer information, in particular, and banking data, in general, is a mandatory requirement for all units.

Therefore, organisations and businesses in this field need to be equipped with modern technologies and constantly enhance multi-layer security capabilities, said Linh.

Furthermore, banks must also regularly issue warnings about new fraud techniques to protect customers' accounts, he noted.

Not only banks, many believe that businesses, especially SMEs, should also adopt a comprehensive defence concept to equip, inform, and guide security teams in the fight against targeted and sophisticated cyber attacks.

According to MIC forecasts, forms of online fraud, network attacks, and targeted APT attacks will continue to occur in the coming months.

However, with the participation of the authorities in eliminating junk bank accounts, especially with the decree on personal data protection taking effect, Khoa expects that this will provide an opportunity for the fraud situation to soon be resolved.— VNS