KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia rebounded to close higher on Wednesday on selective buying of defensive stocks after a volatile trading session. IPPFA Sdn Bhd director of investment strategy and country economist Mohd Sedek Jantan said consumer products and services stocks lifted the key index higher, overcoming lingering geopolitical concerns. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 3.08 points to 1,715.56 from yesterday’s close of 1,712.48. The benchmark index, which opened 1.91 points higher at 1,714.39, moved between 1,710.79 and 1,720.59 during the day’s trading. In the broader market, gainers outstripped decliners 550 to 476, while 612 counters were unchanged, 1,129 untraded, and 48 suspended. Turnover rose to 2.96 billion units valued at RM2.48 billion from 2.94 billion units valued at RM2.56 billion on Tuesday.
Hackers targeted several Taiwanese financial platforms, including the Taiwan Stock Exchange and Mega Financial Holding Co, in a coordinated cyberattack on Thursday. The attack, which briefly disrupted the websites of these entities, was described by local media as an attack by foreign agents.
The attackers employed a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack, which overwhelmed the targeted websites with web traffic, causing unstable connections. According to the Ministry of Digital Affairs, the Taiwan Stock Exchange detected unusually high web query volumes originating from overseas internet-protocol addresses. The exchange managed to restore normal operations within a half-hour of the attack.
Local media outlet Liberty Times reported that a Russian group claimed responsibility for the attack on Telegram, citing an analysis by cybersecurity researchers at Radware. However, the Ministry of Digital Affairs did not confirm the origins of the assault and maintained that it will continue monitoring the situation and assist agencies in enhancing protection measures.
Cybersecurity Concerns in Taiwan:
- Recent Cyber Attacks: Taiwan has been increasingly targeted by cyberattacks from foreign entities. In August, a group believed to be linked to the Chinese government stole passwords and documents from a Taiwanese government-affiliated research center.
- Strategic Importance: Taiwan, the world's largest producer of advanced semiconductors, remains a potential flashpoint in US-China relations. The island has been the focus of escalating tensions, with China claiming Taiwan as its territory and vowing to bring it under control.
- Vulnerability Highlighted: The latest incident underscores the potential vulnerability of Taiwan's computing platforms. DDoS attacks are generally aimed at overwhelming systems rather than stealing data, but they still reveal weaknesses that could be exploited in future attacks.
Response and Future Measures:
- The Ministry of Digital Affairs stated that government websites and trading functions operated normally on Friday. It plans to continue monitoring the situation and support agencies in strengthening their cybersecurity defenses.
- No official comment was received from Radware representatives regarding the attack.
The increasing frequency of cyberattacks against Taiwan highlights the critical need for robust cybersecurity measures to protect its digital infrastructure amid rising geopolitical tensions.
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