TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Government websites of Taiwan are hit with more than 20 million cyber attacks every month, mostly from China, reported CNA on April 5.
According to Chien Hung-wei, Director of Executive Yuan’s Department of Cyber Security, the island is exposed to a staggering number of 20 million to 40 million hacking activities into its public sector per month, 360 of which were successfully carried out in 2017.
Despite the fact that the online attacks are often well camouflaged, Chien believes they are largely conducted by Chinese perpetrators, judging from analyses of the characteristics and types of the offensive maneuvers.
Among the 360 incidents where the networks of Taiwanese public websites were breached last year, most registered as first- to second-grade minor events, involving change of website content, for example. However, 12 cases were identified as the more serious third-grade cyber security events, such as disruption of important service systems and data breach, an example being unauthorized access to email accounts of the Bureau of Consular Affairs via password cracking that led to the leak of personal data regarding oversea travel.
The gravest online threat characterized as the fourth-grade cyber security events which could compromise government workings has not occurred so far, Chien noted.
As a countermeasure, the Department of Cyber Security has put together a task force under the name of “Cybersecurity Service Team,” which will be dispatched to ministerial departments starting April to assist in information security issues and staff training.
A “Cybersecurity School” will also be established by September this year, with the objective of cultivating cyber security talent to meet industry demands, Chien added. The ultimate goal of the school is for it to become an international cyber security research and training institution, providing training courses as well as assessment and certification services for the private sector.
