A recent survey on information and communication technology (ICT) security in Malaysia has discovered that 68 percent of respondents suffered some sort of cybersecurity breach in 2000. The study, conducted by the National ICT Security and Emergency Response Center (NISER), a goverment-backed cybersecurity organisation, indicated that the level of awareness of the need for a thorough process to deter hackers and crackers was very low compared to the US. "Such awareness in the US is in the 90 percent range or higher in companies polled...In Malaysia, I would say we are barely in the 60 percent mark," NICER's Panel of Experts (PoE) chairman Dr Mohamed Awang Lah said. The survey, which is NICER's first since its formation last April, covered 205 public and private sector entities in the finance, retail, manufacturing, services and telecommunications sectors. Other key findings indicated that 47 percent of respondents suffered some form of virus attack in 2000. About 113 of the organisations polled quantified losses attributed to these breaches at around RM239,000 ($62,886) each. See the Viruses and Hacking News Section for the latest headlines. See the Net Crime News Section for the latest on hacking, fraud, viruses and related issues. Have your say instantly, and see what others have said. Click on the TalkBack button and go to the Security forum. Let the editors know what you think in the Mailroom. And read other letters.