HKPC Calls for Strengthened Security in Websites and Networked Industrial Systems

Businesses and industries are urged to strengthen the security of their websites and networked industrial systems amid the prevalence of organized attacks, as reflected by a 476% surge in ransomware-related incidents, said Mr Willy Lin, Chairman of the Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC), at the “Information Security Summit 2016”.

Jointly organized by HKPC and nine other information security bodies, the event was opened today (12 September 2016) by Mr Nicholas Yang, Secretary for Innovation and Technology of the HKSAR Government. He was accompanied by Mr Lin; Mr Allen Yeung, Government Chief Information Officer; Mr Gordon Lo, Acting Executive Director of HKPC; and Mr Dale Johnstone, Chairman of the Summit’s organizing committee.

Mr Lin said, “In the first eight months of this year, the Hong Kong Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Centre (HKCERT) of HKPC has received 236 ransomware-related incident reports, up 476% over the same period last year. The proliferation of ransomware involves careful engineering and a detailed operational model devised by cyber crime syndicates. They even offer ‘Ransomware-as-a-Service’ to other criminals with no cyber know-how.”

Apart from ransomware attacks, Mr Lin also warned local enterprises of website hacking. He said, “Cyber criminals will look for websites with poor security and use them for malware hosting and phishing websites. In response, HKCERT launched the SME Free Web Health Check Pilot Scheme jointly with local trade associations in April to promote the three-step ‘Check - Act – Verify’ approach to raise web security among SMEs.”

Furthermore, as more and more industrial systems and services are connected through the Internet to facilitate data exchanges and to regulate production workflow, new network interfaces and flow of data over untrusted network will create fresh cyber threats.

To raise awareness among local industrial and business communities on these new threats, HKPC will organize an international conference with leading information security experts sharing their knowledge and best practices on cyber security in “Industry 4.0”. There will be demonstration of cyber security solutions to detect and defend against attacks on smart industrial systems at “Smart Industry One”, a new facility now under construction at HKPC to showcase the smart operation and factory of the future.

The Summit this year addresses the theme of “Achieving Business Value, Governance and Compliance – Fighting Cyber Crime and Blended Threats”.

For information about the Summit and HKPC’s cyber security services, please contact Mr Leung Siu-Cheong, Senior Consultant, IT and Business Process Division of HKPC, on tel.: (852) 2788 5420 or email: scleung@hkpc.org. For other media enquiries, please contact Mr Felix Chan of Corporate Communication and Marketing Division at tel. (852) 2788 5036 or email: felixchan@hkpc.org.

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Mr Jonathan Ho
General Manager
Corporate Communication and Marketing
Tel: (852) 2788 6390
Fax: (852) 2788 5056
Email: jonathanho@hkpc.org
Website: www.hkpc.org

12 September 2016

Mr Willy Lin, Chairman of HKPC, delivers welcome speech at the “Information Security Summit 2016”.

Mr Nicholas Yang, Secretary for Innovation and Technology of the HKSAR Government (centre), opens the “Information Security Summit 2016”, accompanied by Mr Willy Lin, Chairman of HKPC (second from left); Mr Allen Yeung, Government Chief Information Officer (second from right); Mr Gordon Lo, Acting Executive Director of HKPC (first from left); and Mr Dale Johnstone, Chairman of the Summit’s organizing committee.