Cybersecurity crime losses in Hong Kong up 15% year on year in first half of 2025
Police on Thursday also highlighted the problem of hacking activities, with financial losses from such attacks surging more than tenfold to HK$39.4 million in the first six months of 2025, up from HK$3.3 million in the same period last year, despite a drop in the number of cases.
The latest figures were revealed as the city's Digital Policy Office introduced key initiatives for promoting cybersecurity in the second half of the year.
Raymond Lam Cheuk-ho, chief superintendent of the cybersecurity and technology crime bureau, noted a heightened level of digital threats in the current landscape.
'We observed a slight decline in hacker attack numbers, but a significant surge in financial losses, which indicates escalating threats,' he said.
Lam cited the case of a local financial institution targeted by hackers in June, which resulted in the theft of over 3 million units of stablecoin and other cryptocurrencies.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
42 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
China-built satellite station a ‘shining' example of support for Namibian space programme
On the outskirts of the Namibian capital Windhoek, a Chinese-funded and built satellite data receiving ground station symbolises China's growing cooperation in Africa's nascent space industry. The station was described by the Chinese embassy as 'a shining example of China-Namibia cooperation ' as they celebrated the 35th anniversary of diplomatic relations. In a social media post on July 18 announcing the completion of the satellite facility ahead of time earlier this year, the embassy said it aimed to support Namibia in developing its space-related infrastructure and training technical talent , while enhancing its capacity in remote sensing satellite applications'. The ground station will primarily receive, process and distribute remote sensing satellite data for various applications such as environmental monitoring, agriculture , disaster management and resource assessment in the southwestern African country. China will also provide technical training to dozens of engineers to build up Namibia's capacity to operate and use the station independently. This ongoing cooperation highlights China's growing influence in space, as it helps African nations to build their space capabilities through strategic partnerships.
South China Morning Post
an hour ago
- South China Morning Post
EU condemns Macau authorities for arrest of former lawmaker and activist
The European Union has condemned Macau authorities for arresting a democracy activist from the former Portuguese enclave over alleged national security violations. In a statement on Saturday, the EU said the arrest of Au Kam-san, a former pro-democracy lawmaker of Macau, 'adds to the existing concerns about the ongoing erosion of political pluralism and freedom of speech' in the city. The casino hub was returned to China by Portugal in 1999. Like Hong Kong, Macau is also run under Beijing's 'one country, two systems' policy. 'The EU recalls that the respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms is a central element of the Macau Basic Law and 'one country, two systems'. 'It is essential that the protected rights and freedoms of Macau residents remain fully upheld in line with the Macau Basic Law, the Sino-Portuguese Joint Declaration of 1987 and Macau's commitments under the International Covenant for Civil and Political Right,' the EU statement read. Au, 68, was taken away from his home on Wednesday. A leading Macau democrat, Au was accused of colluding with foreign forces in breach of the city's national security law, marking the first publicly known arrest under the legislation since its enactment in 2009.
South China Morning Post
2 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
No need to amend law in light of AI porn case, Hong Kong privacy chief says
The head of Hong Kong's privacy watchdog has said there is no immediate need to amend the law to specifically target the creation of AI-generated deepfake pornography, stressing that existing legislation is sufficient to handle offences. In her most detailed comments following a recent high-profile case at the University of Hong Kong, Ada Chung Lai-ling said on Saturday that because the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance was 'principle-based' and 'technology-neutral', it applied to the misuse of personal data in deepfake images. 'The Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance is still applicable … For now, we do not see a need to amend the law,' Chung said at a seminar at the Hong Kong News-Expo. Chung, the privacy commissioner for personal data, said her office would handle complaints concerning AI-generated porn in the same way as any other case involving the collection or disclosure of data. She also noted that other existing laws, such as criminal ordinances that prohibited the disclosure of obscene images, could apply. Ada Chung has confirmed that her office has launched a criminal investigation into the case. Photo: Yik Yeung-man
