A man types on a computer keyboard in Warsaw in this February 28, 2013 illustration file picture.
Photo by Reuters/Kacper Pempel/Files 

Vietnam ranked second among the most vulnerable countries to malware threats in Asia Pacific in a recent report by Microsoft Asia.

In its Security Intelligence Report (SIR) Volume 21, Microsoft identified Asia Pacific, particularly emerging countries, as attracting the highest number of attempted malware attacks.

Vietnam and Indonesia (fourth) were in the top five locations across the globe most at risk of infection, Microsoft said.

The most encountered malicious software families in Asia Pacific include Gamarue, a worm which can give a malicious hacker control of a personal computer, steal information and change personal computer security settings; Lodbak, a trojan that is usually installed on removable drives by Gamarue, and which attempts to install Gamarue when the infected removable drive is connected to a computer; and Dynamer, a trojan which can steal personal information, download more malware or give hackers access to computers.

Microsoft releases the SIR twice a year. It provides unique insights into the threat landscape to help organizations learn about trend data in industry vulnerabilities, exploits, malware and web-based attacks, according to the corporation.

In July last year, computer systems at Vietnam’s two biggest airports were targeted by alleged Chinese hackers, resulting in client information being leaked and forcing check-in staff to perform their tasks manually.

BKAV, Vietnam’s leading cyber security center, said the malware hackers used to attack the airports have been detected in many other computers, and penetrated them undetected under the guise of anti-virus software.

The center added that the malware sends data from Vietnamese websites to its control server, allowing hackers to change images and information on the screen.

Data from BKAV revealed that 40 percent of Vietnamese websites have security leaks, and about 300 websites are attacked each month.