The Stock Exchange of Thailand’s Research Department has issued a grave alert concerning the ever-growing menace posed by cyber malefactors. On a daily basis, worldwide cybercrime incurs an estimated 772 billion baht in losses, and Thailand is projected to suffer daily damages of approximately 85 million baht for the current year. As per the latest stats for 2023, a mind-boggling 61 million Thai internet users, represent an enormous 85.3% chunk of the country’s entire population, a figure that trumps the global average of 64.4% by a fair margin.
The undeniable addiction Thai citizens have with the internet, averaging about seven hours of daily usage, lands the nation in the top ten globally for internet usage. This obsession makes Thailand a glaring hotspot for cyber malefactors. The pressing infrastructural shift towards everyday smartphone transactions has sadly exposed users to greater online risks. An elevated risk exists for Thai users to have cybercriminals exploiting ‘backdoors’ into their digital lives, should they choose not to deploy sufficient and reliable online protection methods.
The department urgently presses for these cyber threats to be tackled in a robust manner, as cybercrime damages are ominously predicted to surpass US$8 trillion by 2023 on a worldwide scale. Data from a 2022 World Economic Forum survey denotes an overwhelming 95% of corporate leaders who rate cybersecurity as a top-tier priority. Therefore, prioritizing cybersecurity as a non-negotiable element in an organization’s risk management strategy is deemed increasingly critical.
The incident rate of cybercrime in Thailand is worryingly on the rise. With an alarming 218,210 cybercrime-related complaints recorded in a single year, the estimated financial damage reaches an astounding 31.5 billion baht or 85 million baht on a daily basis. Much of these cybercrimes point to personal frauds carried out by call center gangs, broadly inclusive, but not limited to operations such as online purchases, loan shark applications, Ponzi schemes, and investment scams.
In terms of damages sustained at an organizational and institutional level, a report by Thailand’s own National Cyber Security Agency (NCSA) indicates a concerning 551 incidents of cyber threats from October 1, 2021, to September 30, 2022. A staggering two-thirds of these incidents were cyber-attacks against government bodies and key institutions through compromised websites. The cyber threat landscape saw educational and public health agencies being the most frequently targeted, leading to occasional major disruptions to the system integrity and data breaches.
The ordeal of these cybersecurity incidents necessitates a prolonged and painstaking remediation, further stressing the severity of the issue. The Research Department at SET recommends a heightened sense of vigilance towards potential cyber threats and strongly advises against taking on investments promising sky-high returns. An additional word of caution is given regarding the importance of performing a comprehensive due diligence prior to entering transactions or investments. This wisdom can significantly fortify the countermeasures against cyber threats, as reported by Bangkok Post.
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