Pakistan’s National Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) has issued an urgent cybersecurity warning after a sharp rise in malicious online activities. The alert targets individuals, businesses, and government portals facing an increased risk of cyberattacks. Hackers are exploiting high-traffic periods and upcoming events to launch phishing campaigns, set up fake websites, spread malware, and infiltrate networks. The combination of high online engagement and advanced tactics has significantly raised Pakistan’s cyber threat level.
CERT warns that successful attacks can cause serious damage. Financial losses may occur through fake e-commerce transactions and fraudulent donation campaigns. Cybercriminals can steal personal or corporate data, spread harmful malware, disrupt services, and damage reputations through website defacement or leaked data. Weakly segmented networks and outdated systems increase the risk, enabling attackers to access multiple connected services.
The advisory lists phishing emails, fake websites, malicious downloads, and unsafe public Wi-Fi connections as key attack methods. Common lures include fake offers, charity appeals, event invitations, and themed content like wallpapers or apps. Even minimal interaction, such as clicking a link or entering login details, can lead to severe breaches or system shutdowns.
To protect personal accounts, CERT advises enabling multi-factor authentication, updating devices promptly, and avoiding public Wi-Fi without a VPN. Users should also set strong, unique passwords. Organizations should patch and secure content management systems, use web application firewalls, segment networks, restrict remote access, and monitor activity continuously.
The agency urges immediate action. This includes applying security patches, enabling MFA, keeping offline backups, and improving detection systems. CERT emphasizes that awareness and vigilance are the first lines of defense against cyber threats. It calls on citizens and organizations to report incidents promptly through the official portal. Timely prevention and coordinated action, it warns, are essential to protecting Pakistan’s digital infrastructure from growing cyber risks.