Malware Attacks In India Surge 11% This Year, 22% Rise In Ransomware: Report

India has witnessed an 11% increase in malware attacks and a 22% rise in ransomware incidents this year, highlighting the growing severity of cyber threats to businesses.

Malware attacks surged to 13,44,566 in 2024, up from 12,13,528 in 2023, according to SonicWall's 2024 Mid-Year Cyber Threat Report. The report also noted a significant 59% rise in Internet of Things attacks, with incidents climbing to 16,80,787 from 10,57,320. Additionally, crypto attacks in India surged by a staggering 409%.

“Organizations today confront a dynamic threat landscape where threat actors continually innovate to outpace enterprise defenses,” SonicWall Vice President APJ Sales Debasish Mukherjee said.

At least 12.6% of an organization’s annual revenues were at risk to cyber threats as businesses endured on average 1,104 hours of critical attacks during a span of 880 working hours, the report said.

Cybersecurity measures protected businesses from a potential of 46 days of downtime.

The report stated that a total of 78,923 never-before-seen malware variants were identified in the first five months of 2024. “The threat landscape remains complex, with over 500 strains of new variants discovered each day,” it said.

Globally, total malware volume rose 30% in the first half of 2024, seeing a massive 92% increase in May alone, it said.

Cryptojacking dropped 60% in most parts of the globe, with the exception of India, it added.

(With inputs from PTI)