CyberPeace Foundation’s recent report showed that India has been a victim of a 55% increase in ransomware attacks in the last year. The sharp increase is evidence of the increasing cybersecurity threat in the country that threatens businesses and individuals. As attackers become more frequent and are now more perceptive, the report recommends much attention paid to general security and complex security measures to be put in place.

Highlights:

• India reported a 55% increase in ransomware attacks compared to the previous year.
• Critical sectors such as healthcare and finance were major targets.
• Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) faced the highest vulnerability.
• Phishing remained the leading method of ransomware delivery.
• Lack of cybersecurity awareness amplified the impact on victims.

The CyberPeace Foundation report brought out that ransomware attacks are on the rise in Indian Space. Hospitals and banks have been particularly hit hard, which I have already mentioned can pose significant threats to patient information and/or financial records. By their nature, these sectors heavily rely on digital foundations, and thus have become easy targets for advanced hackers, who can easily cripple both companies and people.

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have turned out to be the most sensitive to such increasing threats. Due to their scarce capital, SMEs lack sufficient protection from cybercriminals, making them easy targets. The report also stresses the importance of SMEs increasing their focus on acquiring efficient, but more importantly, affordable cybersecurity tools that would reduce risks and the likelihood of experiencing severe business interruptions.

In India, ransomware attacks primarily aim the email as the primary delivery method sustained in penetration. Hackers add that most organizations fail to train its employees on cybersecurity and this is a window they will exploit to get into systems. It has further emphasized the need for leveraging open-source intelligence training and awareness programs in order to lower the current success rate of such attacks and increase readiness against cyber risks.