Cloudflare, Inc. the leading connectivity cloud company, today released a new study focused on cybersecurity in Asia Pacific. The report, called “Securing the Future: Asia Pacific Cybersecurity Readiness Survey,” shares the latest data on cybersecurity preparedness in the region, revealing how organizations are coping with rising volumes of cybersecurity incidents, their levels of preparedness, and the outcomes experienced.
The study revealed that 53% of respondents from organisations in Malaysia experienced more than 10 cybersecurity incidents in the last 12 months. The incidents were attributed mostly to web attacks, phishing, and business email compromise, with respondents ranking planting of spyware, ransomware, and financial gain as the primary goal of cybercriminals.
Cybersecurity incidents also proved costly for organisations in Malaysia, with 48% of respondents indicating they incurred a financial impact of at least US$1 million from cybersecurity incidents over the past 12 months. Respondents also cited the loss of the data/intellectual property, reputational damage, and a loss/reduction of customers as the biggest impact felt by their organisations outside of financial loss.
Despite the frequency of cybersecurity incidents in Malaysia, only 37% of respondents indicated they were “highly prepared” to prevent them. The lack of talent was cited as the biggest challenge when it comes to cybersecurity preparedness.
The aftermath of cybersecurity incidents extends to organisational operations, with 35% of respondents stating their organisations put growth plans on hold, temporarily suspended operations, restricted hybrid work, and disclosed incidents to authorities.
“As organisations in Malaysia continue to grapple with a cybersecurity landscape that is growing in complexity, they must build up their resilience and defences against cyber-incidents. This would require the need for business leaders to recognise the urgency of building a strong cybersecurity culture across all levels of the organisation and make the necessary investments to achieve this,” said Jonathon Dixon, Vice-President and Managing Director, Asia Pacific, Japan and China at Cloudflare.
To find out more about the Asia Pacific Cybersecurity Readiness Survey, please check out this link.
Survey Methodology
This survey was conducted by Sandpiper Communications on behalf of Cloudflare. A total of 4,009 cyber security decision-makers and leaders from small (150 to 999 employees), medium (1,000 to 2500 employees), and large (more than 2,500 employees) organizations. Respondents were drawn from a wide range of industries: Business & Professional Services; Construction & Real Estate; Education; Energy, Utilities & Natural Resources; Financial Services; Gaming; Government; Healthcare; IT & Technology; Manufacturing; Media & Telecoms; Retail; Transportation; Travel, Tourism & Hospitality. Respondents were based in 14 markets across Asia Pacific: Australia, China, Hong Kong SAR, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam (n=203 to 426 per country), and were surveyed online and recruited via general business panels. The survey was aimed at building a better understanding of the threat landscape facing Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) and their teams across the vast and varied territories of Asia Pacific, and the actions driving positive results and outcomes. The survey was conducted in July 2023.
This article is written by Cloudflare