In a startling revelation, a new internet security report by Fortinet, a US-based cybersecurity firm, has unveiled that Taiwan faced an average of 15,000 cyberattacks per second during the first half of 2023, marking an alarming 80 percent increase compared to the same period in the previous year.
This surge in attacks underscores Taiwan’s significant susceptibility to online threats due to its integral role in global supply chains, prompting urgent calls for enhanced protective measures within the Taiwanese business sector. The study further disclosed that among the 412 billion malicious cybersecurity threats detected in the Asia-Pacific region, Taiwan accounted for a staggering 55 percent, or approximately 22.48 billion threats, reflecting the acute nature of the challenge.
Eric Wu, the head of Fortinet Taiwan, highlighted the escalating information security challenges faced by Taiwanese companies, attributing them to hackers’ evolving attack techniques and the development of more sophisticated and lucrative models. This intensifying threat landscape is compounded by Taiwan’s strategic position as a central hub in the global semiconductor supply chain and a geopolitical focal point in the US-China competition within the Indo-Pacific region. Notably, Taiwan has long endured the brunt of cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns, acting as a frontline defender against such threats.
As the cybersecurity battle rages on, the report emphasized the pressing need for Taiwanese companies to adopt advanced technologies, particularly artificial intelligence systems, to safeguard their digital assets.
Taiwan’s struggle for online security assumes even greater significance in light of its upcoming presidential elections. As a democracy with a population of 23.5 million, Taiwan has been combating efforts by the Chinese Communist Party to assert territorial claims and launch concerted disinformation campaigns. The country has undertaken proactive measures to counter the weaponization of online disinformation, including the deployment of a strategy termed “nerd immunity” to enhance public awareness regarding false information circulating on the internet.
Amid this intense political information warfare, Taiwan established a dedicated “FactCheck Centre” in 2018 to effectively combat psychological manipulation through misinformation.
