"Global Malware Volumes Increase for First Time in Three Years"

Security researchers at SonicWall discovered that global ransomware volumes shrunk by 23% year-on-year (YoY) in the first half of 2022, but overall, malware surged by 11% over the period.  The researchers analyzed one million security sensors in over 200 countries, as well as third-party sources during their new research.  The researchers stated that the 2.8 billion malware attacks detected in the first half of 2022 represents the first recorded growth in global malware volumes in three years.  The researchers noted that although ransomware volumes dipped to 236 million, they surged in Europe (63%), which also saw a 29% YoY increase in overall malware attacks.  The researchers also found that there was also a significant increase in encrypted threats designed to evade detection (132%) by using HTTPS tunnels and of threats targeting IoT systems (77%).  Real recorded volumes were 4.9 million and 57 million, respectively.  SonicWall detected 270,228 never-before seen malware variants, a 45% increase from the same period in 2021, which could pose problems to organizations without advanced detection software.  The researchers stated that the financial services sector appears to be among the hardest hit so far this year.  It faced a 100% increase in malware attacks, a 243% surge in ransomware attempts, and a massive 269% increase in cryptojacking attempts.

Infosecurity reports: "Global Malware Volumes Increase for First Time in Three Years"