KUALA LUMPUR: Foreign hackers have been trying to breach the country's military databases on a near-daily basis, seeking to steal security data including those linked to the South China Sea.
"They (hackers) want to monitor discussions (within the Malaysian Armed Forces) on the South China Sea. It is their main target," said Rear Admiral Datuk Mohd Fadzli Kamal Mohd Mohaldin.
The Malaysian Armed Forces' Defence Cyber and Electromagnetic Division director-general said the cyber threats were "constant".
"The hackers are looking to understand our plans and perspectives on the issue and see how our military operations are arranged," he said in an exclusive interview with the New Straits Times.
Cyberattacks related to the hotly disputed region are not uncommon.
In February, hackers attempted to break into the websites and email systems of the Philippine president and government agencies, including one which advocated maritime security.
However, the attacks, which came amid heightened tensions over the South China Sea, were unsuccessful.
In 2016, monitor screens displaying flight information at two international airports in Vietnam suddenly displayed derogatory messages about the country regarding the South China Sea dispute.
Cybersecurity firm Bitdefender reported in May that at least eight entities across countries involved in the dispute, including government and military agencies, had suffered cybersecurity breaches since 2018.
The South China Sea dispute centres on overlapping claims of maritime sovereignty, particularly China.
Beijing is claiming a large part of the sea based on a "nine-dash line" map and had built fortifications on several islands.
The claim had led to disputes with Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei, which also had claims in the sea.
For the record, Malaysia and China had agreed to resolve disputes on the South China Sea through consultations and negotiations.
Fadzli said the hacking attempts mostly tried to obtain data and documents from the emails of military personnel.
"Some of them operated individually and when they obtained the information, they sold it on the black market.
"The second type (of hackers) works within organisations related to the military, but we cannot directly identify who they are.
"However, we have identified the trends in their operations and have increased controls, particularly over personal computer networks, because our secure network system has no issues."
Universiti Utara Malaysia national security analyst Associate Professor Mohamad Faisol Keling said the country must continue to improve its cybersecurity defences to keep pace with technological developments.
"This is necessary because security and defence (approaches) have evolved from the conventional to the sophisticated."
Geostrategist and Nusantara Strategic Research Academy senior fellow Dr Azmi Hassan shared a similar view, saying Malaysia had no option but to continue investing in increasing its cybersecurity capabilities.