If you're wondering what exactly happened last year in Singapore in terms of cyber threats, we've got you covered. Ransomware, botnets, and phishing attacks seem to have dominated last year, as threat actors capitalized on the anxiety and fear caused by the pandemic.
See also: Ransomware: Could a ban on paying ransoms reduce attacks?
According to the Cyber Security Agency (CSA) of Singapore's annual threat report, 89 ransomware cases were reported in 2020, a sharp 154% increase from the 35 cases reported in 2019. The cases mainly affected small and medium-sized businesses in industries such as manufacturing, retail and healthcare.
The CSA said the significant increase in local ransomware cases was likely influenced by the global ransomware epidemic, where three distinct characteristics were observed as ransomware operators used increasingly sophisticated tactics.
These include the shift from indiscriminate, opportunistic attacks to more targeted “big game hunting,” the adoption of “leak and shame” tactics, and the growth of ransomware-as-a-service offerings.
See also: CNA reports data breach after ransomware attack
Singapore, home to major cloud, connectivity and data center providers, is a key hub in the region’s internet infrastructure. In 2020, CSA identified 1,026 malicious command-and-control (C2) servers hosted in Singapore, a 94% increase from 530 C2 servers in 2019.
According to the CSA, the higher number of C2 servers is partly due to the increase in those distributing the highly prevalent Emotet and Cobalt Strike malware, which account for a third of the C2 servers detected.
The increase in the number of C2 servers corresponded to the higher number of botnet drones. Last year, 6,600 botnet drones with Singaporean IP addresses were detected daily, up from the daily average of 2,300 in 2019.
Variants of the Mirai and Gamarue malware were prevalent among infected botnet IP addresses in 2020, with the Mirai malware, which primarily targets internet-of-things (IoT) devices, remaining strong due to the continued growth of IoT devices.
Jonas Walker, security strategist at Fortinet, noted that botnet drones tend to spread within networks to infect additional devices and provide remote network access.
See also: Ransomware businesses: Negotiators are in high demand
The bright spot in Singapore's cyberthreat landscape last year was a 1% decrease in the number of phishing URLs hosted in Singapore compared to 2019.
Globally, 2020 saw a surge in Covid-19-related phishing campaigns. David Koh, Commissioner for Cybersecurity and CEO of the CSA, said 2020 was a year of digitalisation efforts across Singapore’s economy and society, spurred by the challenges brought about by Covid-19.
Information source: computerweekly.com
