Ransomware is a type of malicious malware used by cybercriminals to encrypt sensitive information that can be regained if a ransom is paid. Last year’s data reveals that this type of attack is one of the cybercriminals’ favorite methods.
The Atlas VPN team found that ransomware made up a whopping 81% of all financially motivated cyberattacks in 2020. The remaining 19% include point-of-sale intrusions, e-commerce attacks, business email compromise, and cryptocurrency mining.
As ransomware technology has developed over the last thirty years since its creation in 1989, its threat levels have grown too. In 2020, ransomware attacks caused greater financial damage per breach than average malicious attacks.
An average malicious attack cost victims $4.27 million per assault. In the meantime, ransomware attacks cost 4% more — $4.44 million per breach.
The top 5 biggest ransomware attack payouts of 2020
The year 2020 saw a fair share of ransomware attacks that affected companies and organizations worldwide.
One of the most significant ransomware attacks in 2020 was the Garmin breach. Garmin, an American multinational technology company, is believed to have paid $10 million to its hackers. Garmin was targeted by WastedLocker, ransomware credited to a Russia-based cybercriminal group called Evil Corp.
The next biggest ransom payout to cybercriminals in 2020 belongs to a business travel management company CWT Global. Cybercriminals behind the attack used Ragnar Locker and collected a payment of $4.5 million.
Travelex, a British foreign exchange firm, rounds out the top three companies in this list. The Sodinokibi gang, also known as REvil, is said to be responsible for the attack. Travelex paid the criminal group $2.3 million.
Other organizations that paid a significant ransom to cybercriminals last year include the University of California San Francisco ($1.14 million), as well as Communications and Power Industries ($0.5 million).
Rachel Welch, COO of Atlas VPN, shares her thoughts on ransomware attack trends:
“It is hard to predict whether this year’s ransomware attack levels will surpass the ones of 2020. However, as global companies continue to fall into the traps of ransomware attacks, it is safe to say they are not going anywhere.”
To read the full article, head over to: https://atlasvpn.com/blog/ransomware-accounts-for-81-of-all-financially-motivated-cyberattacks-in-2020
Guest Post: Atlas VPN Says Global VPN Downloads Surge To 277 Million In 2020, Arab Countries Lead
Posted in Commentary with tags Atlas VPN on January 25, 2021 by itnerdAccording to data based on the VPN Adoption Index by Atlas VPN, Virtual Private Network (VPN) downloads reached 277 million in 2020 worldwide.
A Virtual Private Network hides the user’s real IP address and encrypts his browsing traffic. In turn, these changes prevent nosy 3-rd parties such as hackers, ISP (Internet Service Provider), or even the government from tracking the user’s online activities.
Interestingly, the top 4 VPN adopters are Arab countries, which, to be exact, are: The United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, and Saudi Arabia. Here, on average, VPNs penetrate 44.75% of the market. In other words, 4 out of 10 citizens in these countries downloaded a Virtual Private Network application in 2020.
Data reveals the fact that the VPN adoption rate correlates with how strict the internet censorship and other online restrictions are in that country. Most of these countries ban any content that is against Islam values or criticizes the government.
COVID-19 impact on VPN usage
Strict internet restrictions are not the only driving force behind the high VPN adoption rate last year.
From February 2020, people started staying at home due to the closure of offices, public venues and the cancellation of public gatherings caused by the pandemic. People began using the internet more often, with many of them choosing to watch TV shows and movies.
But certain streaming services, such as Netflix, BBC, and Amazon Prime, apply geo-restrictions for viewing the content. However, a VPN provides a way to bypass those blockages.
Moreover, in many companies, the majority of employees started working from home. In turn, to protect the company’s data from hackers, employers required their workers to use VPNs.
Rachel Welch, COO of Atlas VPN, shares her insights on how the VPN market shifted in 2020:
“The year 2020 will be remembered as a year when VPNs became mainstream since millions of people shifted to remote work amidst the coronavirus pandemic. Among other things, to access a company’s network, most people have to use VPN to protect their as well as their employers’ data.”
To read the full article that analyzes the top 10 VPN adopters as well as the reasoning behind it, head over to: https://atlasvpn.com/blog/global-vpn-downloads-surge-to-277-million-in-2020-arab-countries-lead
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