Antivirus is dead: young talents are Hong Kong’s first line of defence against cyberattacks

Winnie Tang says with cyberattackers becoming ever more aggressive and global, rules and battle plans have to be redefined, and the government must urgently step up talent training in schools

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Students of Baptist Lui Ming Choi Primary School get STEM and robotics training in Sha Tin. Trained young talents can boost network security as cyber crime spreads. Photo: K.Y. Cheng

Published: 12:02pm, 23 Jul 2017Updated: 7:16pm, 23 Jul 2017

The recent cyberattack by the ransomware cryptoworm WannaCry drew the world’s attention to network security. According to Kaspersky Lab, a network security software company, the number of online attacks detected in the first quarter of 2017 doubled to more than 400 million, compared with the same period in 2016, while over 200,000 mobile phones were infected by ransomware Trojans, which is 10 times the first quarter of last year.

Unfortunately, antivirus software may not be able to protect your computer and mobile phone completely. Symantec, the developer of Norton, once the best antivirus solution, announced the “death” of antivirus software as it is difficult to shut viruses away.

Cybellum, an Israeli network security firm, recently found a virus that specialised in attacking antivirus software and named it DoubleAgent. Instead of hiding and running away from the antivirus security agent, attackers now directly assault, hijack and gain control over it, turning it into a malicious agent. In other words, it is impossible for us to defend against network attack programmes and ransomware.

Tens of thousands of Chinese firms, institutes affected in WannaCry global cyberattack

Employees of a retail store read a ransomware demand for the payment of US$300 worth of bitcoin on company computers infected by the “Petya” software virus, in Kiev, Ukraine, on June 28. Photo: Bloomberg

Michael Daniel, the White House cybersecurity coordinator in the Obama administration, said cybersecurity is a big challenge in part because we are handling new problems with old thinking. His recent article in the Harvard Economic Review focused on three reasons for the network security problem.

Cybersecurity is a big challenge [as] we are handling new problems with old thinking

One, it is not a mere technical problem, although there is a technical aspect, such as how to write a totally bug-free programme.

Two, cyberspace is different from the physical world, and the rules of the game have to be redefined. At light speed, “concepts like distance, borders and proximity all operate differently”. In the physical world, a person is likely to be on site when committing a crime, while in the internet world, threats can come from anywhere and from anybody.