We are used to seeing new attacks on the network, new threats that constantly put security at risk. However, cybercriminals also change the attacks and sometimes make them more specific. In this article we echo a report that indicates how the amount of malware has dropped, but nevertheless the attacks are more specific . The hackers are focusing their strategy.
Less malware but more targeted attacks
This report has been produced by SonicWall Capture Labs . They have taken into account the number of attacks on the network, malware in general, in the last quarter. They indicate that at a general level there has been a not inconsiderable 39% decrease in malware. Now, cybercriminals are targeting more targeted attacks.
What does this mean? We can say that instead of carrying out a large number of attack attempts, sending malware, which many of them do not report anything to the attackers, they are focusing their efforts on more specific attacks to achieve their objectives.
Although the overall decline in malware is down 39% , some attack varieties have grown tremendously. This is precisely where hackers are focusing their efforts. They are scaling up the attacks that can be most successful. One example is ransomware, which has risen 40% in the last quarter. A figure that undoubtedly tells us that we must be very careful with this threat.
Within the ransomware attacks we must make special mention of Ryuk. It is one of those that has been more present in recent months.
The number of attacks against the Internet of Things has also grown by 30%. We have more and more devices of this type in our homes and that means that cybercriminals can take advantage to carry out these types of attacks. The problem is that many IoT devices have uncorrected vulnerabilities and are therefore exposed on the network.
Another issue to highlight is the increase in intrusion attempts , which has grown by 19% in the last quarter. Cybercriminals are setting their sights here too.
What has caused this change in trend
We have seen that hackers are now focusing their attacks more on certain industries and reducing the amount of malware overall. Why is this happening? An important change has taken place due to the Covid-19 pandemic and is related to the increase in teleworking.
Attackers take advantage of this to send targeted attacks on these types of users. For example ransomware or intrusion attacks. Ryuk, the ransomware that has grown the most in recent months, is targeted. It can also deploy other varieties of malware such as attacks through Emotet or TrickBot .
On the other hand, attacks against IoT devices have a clear logic, and that is that there are more and more in our homes. We have more devices connected to the network and we do not always pay the necessary attention to avoid problems that compromise us.
All this means that we must always keep in mind the importance of protecting our systems and networks. We need to have security tools, but also keep common sense in mind and not make mistakes. We leave you an article where we show some tips to protect our data on the network.
