Cyberstation, the cybersecurity division of Brain Station 23 PLC, says the credentials of nearly all 767 domains across 15 sectors of the country have been found on the dark web.
It also said that login information for 17,362 users and records for more than 1.8 million users have been found online.
Cyberstation's information regarding the dissemination of data on the dark web was highlighted at a seminar titled “Bangladesh Cyber Resilience Briefing” held at BRAC Centre Inn in Dhaka’s Mohakhali on Thursday as part of Cyber Security Awareness Month.
About 150 senior representatives from the banking, telecommunications, and technology sectors, government and academia, officials from regulatory agencies and cybersecurity professionals took part in the seminar, according to a press release from Cyberstation.
Cyberstation claims that the figures it uncovered are minimum estimates and the true number could be higher. According to its findings, the largest share of the available information on citizens is through the government services sector.
It added that the rate of data leaks is highest in the technology and telecommunications sectors.
“We cannot manage the risks we cannot see. Our goal is for organisations to understand what information has been exposed and take action before criminals misuse it,” said Muhibbul Muktadir Tanim, head of cybersecurity services at Cyberstation.
MJ Ferdous, executive director of Brain Station 23, said: “Based on 20 years of experience, we have created CyberStation, our own cybersecurity department. The purpose of [Thursday’s] event was to review where we are in the country’s cyber security situation and what initiatives need to be taken in the future. We need to reduce our dependence on foreign software and increase our own cyber capabilities. If any of our contributions are useful, we sincerely want to be on everyone’s side.”
Cyber security expert Tanvir Hassan Zoha said at the event, “CyberStation is doing important work on cyber security. I have had the opportunity to use the technology they have developed. It can play an important role in raising awareness about cyber risks and also in developing effective prevention and response strategies.”
Tech expert Monir Hossain highlighted the importance of the company’s Darkwatch monitoring platform at the event and said, “We should all work together to advance domestic technological initiatives like Darkwatch developed by Brain Station 23.
“If such initiatives are further developed, they will make a significant contribution to Bangladesh’s overall cybersecurity.”
The seminar featured a panel discussion on the risks of information being exposed on the dark web in Bangladesh and ways to address them.
The discussion focused on preventing misuse of information and taking coordinated initiatives to address such risks.