Rangsit University Analysis: Cyberattacks Threaten Thailand's Labor Productivity and Key Industries

Key summary

Assoc Prof Dr Aat Pisanwanich of Rangsit University's Faculty of Economics analyzed the impact of rising cyberattacks on Thailand's economy and labor productivity. Citing OECD data, the analysis notes that North America and Europe accounted for nearly 80% of global incidents between 2014 and the present, with specific shares of 51% for North America, 27% for Europe and Central Asia, and smaller percentages for other regions. The report links the surge in attacks to geopolitical events like the Russia-Ukraine war starting February 24, 2022, and rising bitcoin prices from below US$1,000 in 2016 to US$100,000 in 2025. National Cyber Security Agency (NCSA) statistics for the period January–September 2023 through 2026 show incidents rising from 2,000 in 2023 to over 3,000 in 2026, averaging 12 daily incidents in 2023 and 363 in 2026. The analysis identifies finance, banking, energy, healthcare, telecommunications, manufacturing, transport, logistics, government, trade, e-commerce, tourism, and media as the ten key exposed industries, which generated THB12.74 trillion in combined value added in 2024. Manufacturing alone contributed about THB3.86 trillion (20.3% of GDP), followed by trade and e-commerce at THB2.54 trillion (13.4% of GDP). Risks are stratified into very high for finance, banking, and energy; high for healthcare, telecommunications, manufacturing, transport, logistics, and government; and moderate for trade, e-commerce, tourism, hotels, and media. SMEs face the greatest risk due to limited budgets and personnel. The analysis warns of hybrid warfare, financial fraud, phishing, online scams, ransomware, DDoS attacks, and cyber sabotage targeting critical infrastructure. Regional data from a 2026 OECD report indicates China at 22% and Japan at 21% of incidents in East Asia and ASEAN, with Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines, South Korea, and Malaysia each accounting for 10%, 6%, or less.