DESIGNED to develop the next generation of the cybersecurity workforce, at the same time improve the cybersecurity ecosystem in the Philippines, the first Cybersecurity Academy in the Philippines was launched last week.

Housed at the Asia Pacific College (APC) in Magallanes, the program, supported by global cybersecurity leader Palo Alto Networks, will roll out new cybersecurity courses under the academy curriculum to students across all disciplines starting from February 2020.

In addition to the School of Computing and Information Technologies, students from the School of Management, School of Multimedia and Arts, and School of Engineering will also have the opportunity to enroll in cybersecurity-related courses,” Dr. Tata Medado, president, Asia Pacific College said.

“It is a great honor to be Palo Alto Networks pioneering Cybersecurity Academy in the Philippines, and we look forward to building on this mutually rewarding relationship for many years to come

A new laboratory called the “APC Cybersecurity Sandbox” is the program’s main feature. It is basically a prototyping and training center is secured by Palo Alto Networks. As a sandbox, the program uses a discovery process for courses that revolve around theoretical classroom instruction, but a deep immersion in technical and hands-on lab training.

Students will go through courses on the cybersecurity landscape and learn how to combat threats. Upon completing the four-year course, each student will be eligible as either a Palo Alto Networks Certified Cybersecurity Associate or Certified Network Security Administrator.

“The vision of APC is to develop talent who have the skills and mindset to take on any challenge in any environment — in both the local as well as international market. With the shortage of cybersecurity professionals being a global challenge, we recognize the importance of cybersecurity education as a fundamental skill that must be learned and applied in various aspects of our daily lives, early on,” Medado added.

The course will focus on cybersecurity gateway, infrastructure configuration, and defense and countermeasures. Palo Alto Networks has forged similar academic partnerships with colleges and universities in more than 40 countries in the US, Europe, Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific. It is dedicated to training the next generation of the security workforce.

“To protect our increasingly digital way of life in the Philippines, we need to ensure that there’s a sufficient pool of cybersecurity talent available. We are committed to addressing the talent shortage challenge through this academic partnership and hope that this is the beginning of many more partnerships in the near future,” Oscar Visaya, country manager for the Philippines, Palo Alto Networks said.

MORE than half of organizations in the Philippines have either experienced a cybersecurity incident or are not sure if they had one as they have not performed proper actions or data breach assessment.

This was revealed in a study by Frost & Sullivan commissioned by Microsoft. As Filipinos’ are getting increasingly Internet-savvy, compromises on cybersecurity and data protection also rise. Keeping digital assets safe must be a top priority for small to medium enterprises as much as it is for big enterprises.

Ninety nine percent of the nearly 1 million registered businesses in the Philippines are considered micro and small enterprises. These SMEs employ less than 100 workers and have assets of P15M or less, excluding value of land if they own the property they work in. Oftentimes, properties are leased or rented.

The exponential growth of SMEs over the years, calls for a rapid adaption to digital transformation, while simultaneously putting in place cybersecurity practices that would protect businesses along the way.

October was National Cybersecurity Awareness Month in the Philippines.

To celebrate it, Microsoft shared valuable tips that would allow SMEs to recognize the dangers and risks of cyberattacks and help organizations better prepare for data breaches. Below are some of the best practices that one’s company can consider in improving its defense against cybersecurity threats:

Phishing threats. It takes a hacker only 4 minutes long to get into a network and 99 days for businesses to discover that they’ve been breached. Refrain from opening suggested links or never reveal confidential information unless you are certain that the person you are talking to is genuine. Even when you know the person asking, gauge if they are entitled to sensitive information about yourself.

Strong password needed. Customize your password by making your password longer or more complex. Strong and complex passwords should include a combination of letters, numbers, and special characters which makes it harder to guess and harder to crack.
Password protect everything. It is important for all, and that includes all employees’ phones, laptops, tablets, and files, to set up their accounts with the multi-factor authentication for added security. Multi-factor authentication is a security system that verifies a user’s identity by requiring multiple credentials such as, code from the user’s smartphone, answering security questions, a fingerprint or facial recognition.

Keep your data safe in the Cloud. No one likes to lose their data. Back-up all your files to keep and transfer everything behind firewalls into the cloud. Patch everything and keep your systems up to date.

Plan for the worst. Every small business owner can put an affordable, actionable plan in place to mitigate risk to save time and money. Prevention is just as important as a response plan. Develop action plans with your staff in case something goes wrong.

Microsoft recommends that all organizations be in a continuous state of compliance. These practices should not just be tool-sets but also a training employees but need a continuous investment in good technology solutions and hardware. Leverage technology advancements by acquiring top-quality protection and not underestimating cyberthreats.

Investing in digital tools is one thing and applying these best practices is another.

Filipino SMEs must realize the need to be aware of all potential cyberthreats and the steps to prevent them. It is never too late to safeguard their businesses accordingly and further grow the company to its full potential without any fear and doubts along the way.

“It is imperative for small to medium enterprises to embrace 21st-century technology in order to survive in the competitive business landscape today. We, at Microsoft, are committed not only to bring these organizations the right solutions but also the best cybersecurity tips and practices one should take note of when running a business,” Microsoft Country Manager, Andres Ortola said.

VULNERABLE Internet of Things or IoT devices are one of the known entry points for malware and spyware. Sometimes infiltrating networks and systems, other times using the device itself to listen through the microphone or see what the camera is seeing.

Ever since the proliferation of Mirai, attacks that use exploits swarmed unprotected–mostly China-made CCTV cameras gaining access to their image processors–became commonplace.

Honeypots, networks of virtual copies of various Internet connected devices and applications over the Web are decoy devices are used to attract the attention of cybercriminals so that security experts like Kaspersky can analyze their activities.

Kaspersky’s Honeypot detected 105 million attacks on IoT devices coming from 276,000 unique IP addresses in the first half of 2019, nine times more than the same time last year 2018, when only around 12 million attacks were spotted originating from 69,000 IP addresses.

Network-connected and interactive, or “smart” devices, such as routers or DVR security cameras are becoming widespread, yet security is not top priority for many, thus giving cybercriminals opportunity to tap the vast financial opportunities in exploiting such gadgets.

They use networks of infected smart devices to conduct DDoS attacks or as a proxy for other types of malicious actions.

Based on data analysis collected from these honeypots, it was discovered that attacks on IoT devices are usually not sophisticated, but more stealth-like, as users might not even notice their devices are being exploited. Mirai, the malware family behind 39 percent of attacks is capable of using exploits, meaning that these botnets can slip through old, unpatched vulnerabilities to the device and control it.

Nyadrop, a relatively newer but less prevalent exploit was detected in 38.57 percent of attacks and often serves as a Mirai downloader.

Gafgyt comes in third with 2.12 percent presence. Both exploits use password brute-forcing attacks.

Researchers were also able to identify the locations where most infections were discovered to have originated during the first six months of 2019. China is number one with 30 percent of all attacks followed by Brazil with 19 percent, then Egypt with 12 percent. In the same period last year, Brazil topped the list with 28 percent, China with 14 percent and Japan with 11 percent.

The ways to protect devices against these attacks are simple and readily available, and is applicable for both for individuals and enterprises. First, is to check for, download and install updates for the device firmware as soon as possible. Vulnerabilities are fixed through patches within updates.

It is always highly recommended to change preinstalled passwords. Using complicated passwords that include both capital and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols gets high levels of protection. Third, reboot a device that’s acting strangely. It might help get rid of existing malware but won’t guarantee another attack thus fourth recommendation is to keep access to IoT devices restricted by a local VPN. This allows access them from the home or main network, instead of publicly exposing these over the Internet.

SMART energy usage. This is the objective of Schneider Electric’s first containment solution called HyperPod. Developed in collaboration with VST-ECS Philippines (known previously as MSI-ECS) the solution aims to help businesses become smarter energy consumers, transforming data center management and maintenance.

Data storage and processing is scaled rack by rack rather than server by server which takes up more room space. Data centers now look to simpler, cost-optimized equipment and open compute architectures.

Schneider Electric’s HyperPod enables data centers to be designed, deployed, and upgraded faster at a lower total installation cost. It is scalable and highly customizable to support various business applications increasing efficiency while maintaining flexibility and the ability to roll racks in and out. Compared to traditional systems, it has frame-based containment and power cables are mounted on its own cantilevers.

The system also allows for swift installation, up to 21 percent faster compared to traditional methods. Reducing installation time for ceiling grid work, installation of under-floor cable trays and cutouts. This results to containment assembly and running power that prevents costly, time-consuming, and invasive construction, and accommodate different cooling configurations, support a variety of power distribution options. The high scalability opens opportunities for new applications quickly and cost-effectively.

“The concept behind Schneider Electric’s newest innovation is all about helping businesses optimize their operations and making sure that we get maximum productivity while achieving savings and efficiency. With HyperPod, we hope to reshape industries by providing Innovation at Every Level through our scalable and flexible innovation that is fit for any business’ data center needs. Our partnership with VST-ECS Philippines showcases what efficiency truly means and we hope to share this with everyone,” Tony Kang, Business Vice President for Secure Power, Schneider Electric Philippines said.

The HyperPod is offered to co-location and Cloud providers, large telecommunications companies, and large enterprises. Since it is scalable, it can also cater to small-to-medium businesses that house their own data centers. Installation costs varies as it is highly dependent on the size and scale of data centers, but up 16 percent capex savings can be realized as companies start making the shift.

“Schneider Electric is more than just a partner to VST-ECS. We strongly believe in their mission when it comes to using technology to create innovations that businesses and consumers can use to optimize their operations for maximized productivity and efficiency.

This is why we are opening the first HyperPod in the Philippines to companies and end-users with data center operations so they can learn more about its different applications and benefits,” Tom Pascual, Jr., Assistant Vice President for Technology and Product Solutions Division, VST-ECS Philippines added, mentioning that site tours can be arranged by contacting Joan Aquino at jaquino@msi-ecs.com.ph.