Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation joins efforts to increase cyber security awareness

By Digital News Asia July 24, 2017

CyberSecurity Malaysia role to build trust, operational capabilities of local organisations
3,928 cybercrime incidences reported between January and June 2017

Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation joins efforts to increase cyber security awareness

CYBERSECURITY Malaysia, the national cyber security specialist and technical agency aims to further boost Malaysia’s cyber resilience through ICT certification for local companies as well as enhanced collaboration with law enforcement agencies and non-government organisations (NGOs) to combat cyber-crime.

The announcement was made on July 20 at CyberSecurity Malaysia’s Information Security Certification Body (ISCB) certificates presentation ceremony and appreciation night held in conjunction with CyberSAFE Dialogue 2017 officiated by Deputy Minister of Science, Technology & Innovation (MOSTI) Abu Bakar Mohamad Diah. During the ceremony, 12 Information Security Certification Body (ISCB) certificates were awarded to Malaysian organizations which successfully complied with Common Criteria ISO/IEC 15408, Information Security Management System (ISMS) ISO/IEC 27001 as well as Malaysia Trustmark Service for e-business validation.

In its bid to stem the rise of cybercrime, CyberSecurity Malaysia also signed a Memorandum of Collaboration with NGO Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF) to scale up joint effort towards crime prevention and increase cyber security awareness through public engagement and strategic research. Both organisations have agreed to exchange information and render mutual assistance related to crime prevention activities and cyber security reference on public safety.

“The prevention of cyber-criminal activities is the most critical aspect in the fight against cybercrime. CyberSecurity Malaysia will continue to play a more aggressive role in educating the public on cyber security measures and helping curb cyber-criminal activities in Malaysia. Through Malaysia Computer Emergency Response (MyCERT) and digital forensics departments, we are ready to collaborate with law enforcement agencies to ensure a more secure and safer cyberspace for all,” said CyberSecurity Malaysia chief executive officer Amirudin Abdul Wahab, during the signing ceremony.

Meanwhile, Abu Bakar highlighted that cyber-crime including fraud, hacktivism, online scams, espionage and cyber harassment has been increasing rapidly over the past decade in Malaysia.

“Between 2012 and 2016, CyberSecurity Malaysia has received a total of 50,789 cyber security incident reports. To counter today’s rising cyber threats, it is crucial that CyberSecurity Malaysia continues to provide certification and cyber security accreditation services in order to build trust, increase competitiveness and operational capabilities of local organisations in the cyber security sector,” said Abu Bakar.

“CyberSecurity Malaysia plans to intensify our efforts in the coming months to encourage more local companies to secure international ICT certification in order to elevate their cyber security capability and readiness in the face of escalating global cyber-threats including WannaCry and Petya ransomware as well as Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks,” said General Mohd Azumi Mohamed (retired), chairman Board of Directors of CyberSecurity Malaysia.

CyberSecurity Malaysia first established Malaysian Common Criteria Certification Body (MyCB) MyCB in 2008. It was later changed to ISCB in 2011. CyberSecurity Malaysia has issued 179 certificates to local and international organisations specialising in security related products as well as critical services, from all its certification initiatives.

In the latest International Telecom Union (ITU) Global Cybersecurity Index 2017, CyberSecurity Malaysia was ranked third most committed in raising cyber security awareness among the 193 countries surveyed. “The consistently high ranking accorded to Malaysia in cybersecurity is a strong testament to the unwavering commitment and leadership demonstrated by CyberSecurity Malaysia in creating and sustaining a safer cyberspace as Malaysia pushes ahead with its Digital Economy transformation agenda,” added Mohd Azumi. 2017 also marks a significant milestone for the national cyber security specialist agency as it celebrates its 20^th Anniversary.

According to the latest statistics released by CyberSecurity Malaysia, a total of 3,928 cybercrime incidences have so far been reported between January and June 2017.