A user surfs the Internet for information about ransomware attacks and security breaches. — Photo daidoanket.vn

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam incurred financial losses amounting to tens of trillions of đồng (hundreds of millions of US dollars) in 2024 and early 2025 due to a surge in cyberattacks, according to a report by cybersecurity company Bkav.

The company disclosed that ransomware attacks alone infected nearly 156,000 computers in the country last year, crippling businesses with ransom payments, operational shutdowns, customer losses and reputational damage.

Many victims faced severe financial strain after paying hackers to recover data, while others grappled with prolonged system outages.

Bkav noted that a majority of affected users lacked adequate protections: they either used no antivirus software, relied on foreign solutions without expert oversight or depended solely on built-in operating system defences.

These vulnerabilities created critical gaps for cybercriminals to exploit.

Cyberattacks grew increasingly sophisticated this year, with hackers targeting businesses to extort large ransoms or steal sensitive intelligence, Bkav added.

A survey by the National Cybersecurity Association revealed that approximately 46 per cent of organisations faced at least one cyberattack annually, while nearly 7 per cent reported frequent breaches.

Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) attacks accounted for about one-fourth of incidents, followed by ransomware at around 15 per cent, highlighting the dominance of these methods.

Experts urged organisations to conduct regular system vulnerability scans, implement real-time network monitoring and establish robust data recovery plans to mitigate risks.

They also cautioned that dormant malware may still lurk within Vietnamese systems, poised to strike opportunistically.

"Cybersecurity awareness and professional preventive measures are urgently needed," an expert emphasised, calling for heightened vigilance amid escalating threats. — VNS