According to the 2024 Global Threat Report by Texas-based cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, the Philippines is facing increasing cyberattacks from Chinese hackers.
See also: Finland: APT31 hackers breached Parliament in 2021
The report highlights how artificial intelligence tools that can create increasingly convincing text, images and videos make it easier for malicious actors to spread disinformation and gain access to sensitive systems.
Additionally, the speed of cyberattacks continues to accelerate. The report’s cited data shows that the average time to leak has dropped to just 62 minutes from 84 the previous year (with the fastest recorded attack occurring in 2 minutes and 7 seconds). Once initial access was gained, it took just 31 seconds for the initial tools in an attempt to compromise victims.
According to him, these AI models “can learn the nuances of different languages, dialects, and even features like slang from large data sets, allowing adversaries to create authentic communication audio.”
This lowers the barrier to conducting persuasive phishing attempts and disinformation campaigns, increasing the risks for the Philippines, where mobile and social media usage is high.
The report warns that “Chinese, Russian, and Iranian hackers will likely conduct cyberattacks and disinformation operations with Genetic Intelligence tools.”
See also: Chinese hackers breach networks through ScreenConnect and F5 BIG-IP vulnerabilities
Recent examples include the use of GenAI to create misleading videos during Taiwan's 2024 presidential election.
The report also highlights the increased targeting in the Philippines by Chinese hackers through supply chain breaches and cyber attacks.
The Wet Panda cybercriminal group is believed to infiltrate networks through aliases and other methods, before encrypting key files and demanding payments in cryptocurrency to restore the data.
Recently, several government websites in the Philippines were hit by a cyberattack that was traced to China. The affected websites included that of the Overseas Workers Welfare Service, the Greek Coast Guard , and the official website of President Marcos.
The incident prompted the Ministry of Information and Communications to launch an investigation into the cyberattack, which occurred during the heightened tensions between Manila and Beijing in the West Philippine Sea. China, however, denied its participation in the incident.
See also: Leaked documents reveal China's hacking activities
What are the strategies used by Chinese hackers?
Chinese hackers use a variety of strategies for their cyberattacks. One of them is social engineering, where hackers exploit human naivety and trust to gain access to sensitive information. In addition, they use spear phishing, where they send malicious emails that appear to come from a trusted provider in order to gain access to personal information. Another strategy they use is exploiting vulnerabilities in operating systems and software applications. This means that they look for and exploit weaknesses in software code to penetrate systems. Finally, Chinese hackers also use zero-day attacks, where they exploit an undisclosed vulnerability in an operating system or software application before developers have a chance to create a fix.
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Source: inquirer.net
