Read Time:1 Minute, 49 Second
With the recent Medibank and Optus attacks, security experts predict those threat actors will continue to discover and exploit weaknesses in the Australian forefront. Companies still need to believe that they might be a target.
According to Dr Mohiuddin Ahmed, senior computing and security lecturer at Edith Cowan University, there will be more attempts at security breaches in 2023. He expects the targets to be highly digitised Australian hospital systems and other critical infrastructure.
Ahmed further notes that this may be the beginning after the success of the Medibank and Optus breaches. “We use many internet-connected healthcare devices, and if those devices are hacked and remotely compromised by these cyber criminals, we’ll be left in a situation where we have to pay the ransom. Otherwise, people’s lives will be at stake.”
Ahmed added that companies should consistently follow ‘cyber hygiene’ to minimise potential threats affecting their services. Mamoun Alazab, an associate professor at Charles Darwin University, stated that the government is already taking the necessary steps to prepare for the forecasted influx of cybersecurity attacks in the following year.
The accumulated cost of cyber incidents to Australian businesses in 2021, amounting to $42 billion, is just the “tip of the iceberg”, as Dr Alazab said.
“Cyber attacks are expected to double in Australia within five years, and the country will also experience a shortage of 3000 highly-skilled cyber security workers by 2026, according to a national plan. Australia’s Cyber Security Minister Clare O’Neil last month announced a 100-strong, standing cybercrime operation targeting hackers led by federal police and Australian Signals Directorate.”
However, Palo Alto’s CSO Sean Duca recommends something else. The CSO states that government services, businesses and hospitals should discuss whether they would pay the ransom and how much they would be willing to do so.
To support this idea, Dr Alazab discussed how the country should have to exercise a collective effort towards enhancing cybersecurity. He suggests a robust public-private partnership and workforce education.
Other ways to create a shield against the attack are the Australian Cyber Security Centre’s “Exercise in a Box” and cyber security insurance for organisations.
Happy
0 %
Sad
0 %
Excited
0 %
Sleepy
0 %
Angry
0 %
Surprise
0 %
0
0
