According to knowledgeable individuals acquainted with the situation, PTA intends to carry out passive risk scanning of the telecom sector on a monthly basis.The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has engaged in passive risk scanning that isn’t obtrusive before national holidays (14th August and 6th September 2022).
To defend against any cyber issue, the activity was conducted on publicly accessible infrastructure of category 1 and category 2 operators. Sources claim that a total of 7 iterations of scanning were carried out throughout the exercise, improving the security posture of the top 22 telecom carriers.
The PTA intends to keep doing this activity every month in the future.According to PTA officials, Indian hackers have been increasingly targeting Pakistan’s official websites over the past few years.
“2017-2021 Trend study reveals a significant increase in reported hacking and deliberate destruction operations on official websites, including those of the government and ministries,” according to the analysis.These hackers might target Pakistan’s telecom sector as well.
PTA has urged all telecom companies to take the required precautions to thwart and lessen the effects of hacking, espionage, and sabotage.Additionally, the regulator will periodically engage in non-intrusive passive risk scanning activity as a defence against these kinds of attacks.