Indian education sector biggest target of cyber threats

India is the biggest target of cyber threats to educational institutions and online platforms, followed by the USA, the UK, Indonesia and Brazil, according to a report. The report further stated that the adoption of remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, digitisation of education, and prevalence of online learning platforms have been the main reasons for cyber-attacks. The report has been compiled by the Threat Research and Information Analytics Division of CloudSEK, a Singapore-based AI-driven Digital Risk Management Enterprise.

The report further stated that of the threats detected in Asia and Pacific last year, 58% of them were targeted at Indian or India-based educational institutions and online platforms. Indonesia was second with 10% of cyber threats. The report further stated that the USA was the second most affected country across the globe accounting for 86% of the threats in North America.

The report further indicates that many cybercriminals are actively leaking databases, accesses, vulnerabilities and exploits, and other information belonging to educational institutions, on cybercrime forums. The experts have asserted in the report that given the size and impact of the education sector, it is critical for institutions, students, parents, teachers and the government to ensure that information gathered and stored is not leaked and exploited by cybercriminals.

The experts advised that institutions should block illegitimate IP addresses and deactivate port forwarding using network firewalls. They should perform real-time monitoring of the internet to identify and mitigate low-hanging threats, such as misconfigured apps, exposed data and leaked access to address cyber threats

The experts also further stated that the students, parents, faculty and staff should avoid clicking on suspicious emails, messages and links; not download or install unverified apps; use strong passwords, and enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) across accounts to avoid cyber-attacks.

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