Collaborating with Arbor Networks to Organize a Workshop on Security Solutions and DDoS Attack Prevention

2012-07-04 10:12:40

On the morning of July 4, 2012, in Hanoi, the Department of Information Technology & Financial Statistics, Ministry of Finance, Tinh Van Group Joint Stock Company (Tinh Van Group), and Arbor Networks jointly organized a workshop: Introduction and demonstration of security solutions and DDoS attack prevention in the government and public finance sectors.

Attending the workshop were Mr. Tran Nguyen Vu – Deputy Director of the Department of Information Technology & Financial Statistics, Ministry of Finance; Mr. Pham Thuc Truong Luong – Deputy General Director in charge of Products, International Relations, Quality Management – Tinh Van Group; Mr. Anthony Ong – ASEAN Regional Director – Arbor Networks; and nearly 100 representatives from agencies, organizations, and enterprises operating in the IT field.

Overview of the workshop introducing and demonstrating security solutions and DDoS attack prevention

Cyber warfare is officially acknowledged by many countries, which have developed countermeasures. DDoS attacks are a part of cyber warfare used by many countries due to their effectiveness and ease of covering tracks. Therefore, security solutions and DDoS attack prevention in the government and public finance sectors are of great concern to many countries.

In the US, the White House faced significant challenges after the Stuxnet virus escaped. Stuxnet is spyware that attacked to delay Iran's nuclear program. In fact, the Stuxnet virus eliminated nearly 1,000 out of 5,000 centrifuges at the Natanz nuclear facility.

Cyber warfare is also mentioned by many countries in the context where gunfire warfare is no longer a top-secret and instantly effective weapon. Simply put, any country is reluctant to be labeled as the first attacker, while cyber warfare allows for immediate attacks where the initiator can remain completely secret.

Returning to Vietnam, DDoS attacks are used by many actors for two reasons: these attacks occur covertly, making early detection and prevention very difficult; more dangerously, DDoS attacks can paralyze the response capability of entire systems.

Tinh Van Group and Arbor Networks experts presented several hypothetical scenarios and demonstrated DDoS attack prevention solutions to representatives from the Government, ministries, sectors, and IT experts in the finance sector (General Department of Customs; General Department of Taxation; State Treasury; General Department of Reserves and State Securities Commission; Ministry of Public Security; Ministry of Industry and Trade, etc.). These solutions fully convinced the attending guests due to their optimal ability to prevent DDoS attacks.

Evaluating the workshop's results, Mr. Tran Nguyen Vu, Deputy Director of the Department of Information Technology & Financial Statistics – Ministry of Finance, stated: Arbor Networks' DDoS attack prevention product is truly an impressive solution in the context of increasing system attack risks. This is also considered a foundation for the Ministry of Finance – as the agency responsible for public finance – to consider applying it to systems of the Treasury, Taxation, Customs, etc., which are fertile ground for criminals using this form of attack.