KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 20): Cyber threats against the construction, engineering, and infrastructure sectors in Southeast Asia continue to rise as businesses keep growing and embrace new technologies as well as digital ways of working, according to global advocate The Software Alliance, also known as BSA.

In a statement on Tuesday (Sept 20), BSA citing Gartner Inc said cyberattacks on organisations in critical infrastructure sectors rose dramatically from less than 10 in 2013 to almost 400 in 2020.

It said these industries face various cybersecurity risks from data breaches and phishing attempts to ransomware attacks that can cost them billions of dollars.

It said on top of that, widespread use of unlicensed design software in these industries is risky as it makes them extremely vulnerable.

BSA senior director Tarun Sawney said that to help business leaders build a strong defence against cyber threats, BSA has launched a survival guide which outlines rising cyber risks, and offers advice on how business leaders in Southeast Asia can enhance cybersecurity for their businesses.

Sawney said no country or organisation in the Asean region is spared the threat of fast-evolving cybercrime.

He said given their position among the fastest-growing digital economies in the world, Asean member countries have become a prime target for cyberattacks.

“Because we know business leaders face multiple challenges and may not have the time to commit to studying the issue, we endeavoured to create this survival guide.

“Our hope is that the industries building our infrastructure find it useful — and that it helps to keep us all safer,” he said.

Sawney said the free e-book, entitled “A cybersecurity survival guide for construction, engineering and infrastructure businesses in Southeast Asia", will help Southeast Asian leaders in the infrastructure industry identity threats, and minimise the risks that the organisation, its clients and, ultimately, the public face.

The free e-book can be downloaded here.