Cyber security firm exec sees strong business in PHL on sustained rise of BPO sector

MANILA – An official of a global cybersecurity firm is positive on its business in the Philippines given the strong rise of the country’s business process outsourcing (BPO) sector and the government’s bid to secure its computer-related systems.

In an interview by PNA Friday, Symantec Senior Director for Cyber Security Services for Asia Pacific and Japan, said the rise of the country’s BPO sector in recent years had also resulted in higher demand for security-related services.

He said the rise of several industries such as the BPO sector had been “very significant” and their cybersecurity demand also rose given the surge of malware and computer viruses.

He said Symantec was normally in contact with these organizations “particularly because they’ve tied-up a lot of times with service level agreements with their outside organizations. And a lot of times they have been audited on their security measures as well.”

He said these entities have allocated higher funding for cybersecurity measures.

“So we see, for the Philippines in general, quite an increase in security span, driven a lot by the BPO space and the government as well,” he said but declined to give figures.

A recent study by Symantec shows that cyber criminals have shifted their organizations by adopting corporate best practices and establishing professional businesses to make their attacks against corporates and individuals more efficient.

Sparkes said “advanced criminal attack groups now echo the skill sets of nation-estate attackers.”

“They have extensive resources and a highly-skilled technical staff that operate with such efficiency that they maintain normal business hours and even take the weekends and holidays off,” he said.

The Symantec official disclosed that the company was “even seeing low-level criminal attackers create call center operations to increase the impact of their scams.”

Thus, he advised companies and individuals alike to be more discerning and be wary of their cyber security.

For companies, he said these should employ strong security posture, prepare for the worst, and provide on-going education and training.

For individuals, Sparkes advised them to use strong passwords or those that cannot be easily detected, to think twice before clicking on a link provided by people they do not know, to be wary of scareware tactics or those that pose as free softwares, and to strictly safeguard their personal data.