Digital opportunities and potential calamities
Indonesia’s digital economy has seen exponential growth in recent years and is the largest among its peers in the Southeast Asia region. The country has made enormous strides in digitalization by nurturing and capitalizing on local capabilities, resulting in the establishment of multi-billion-dollar tech giant Go-To, as well as numerous home-grown tech startups. This has made Indonesia an even more attractive investment destination for global technology companies, which further spurs Indonesia’s digital economy growth. However, these digital opportunities have also been the source of potential digital calamities in Indonesia. They expose the country to greater risks and give rise to vulnerabilities due to inadequate cybersecurity protection measures. To date, Indonesia is highly prone to data breaches and phishing attacks. A total of approximately 15 million online data breaches were recorded throughout 2022, intensifying concerns regarding data privacy violations and data protection laws in the country.The lack of cybersecurity professionals and insufficient awareness about cyber threats have contributed to Indonesia’s inability to meet certain cybersecurity standards, leaving the country vulnerable to attacks. The country still struggles to prevent and manage cyber threats and cyber incidents, scoring just 63.64 on the National Cyber Security Index (NCSI). This is also reflected in the relatively low revenues of the Indonesian cybersecurity market, which currently ranks sixth among Asia-Pacific countries.
