"Cyber Extortion Activity Jumps to New Record in Q1 2023"

Orange Cyberdefense's Cy-Xplorer 2023 report analyzed cyber extortion activity during 2022. Data from 6,707 confirmed business victims reveals a fluctuation in the number of victims across different countries and industries, as well as the expansion of attacks into new regions. While the data indicate an 8 percent decrease in cyber extortion victims in 2022, this decrease appears to have been temporary, as the latest data shows the highest volumes to date in the first quarter of 2023. According to the report, 2022 was the year of 'distraction' and rebranding for some of the most noteworthy cyber extortion operations that Orange Cyberdefense monitors. The geographical shift of cyber extortion attacks has greatly impacted Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, and Malaysia. The number of victims has decreased in regions including North America and Europe. Orange Cyberdefense has previously observed that countries are primarily targeted opportunistically and that the number of victims largely depends on the number of registered organizations in a country. This general trend is, however, shifting as larger Western countries respond actively to the threat and as threat actors are forced to find new hunting grounds. Threat actors are increasingly focusing on regions where they perceive a lower level of risk for them, which may be partly due to local governments' inaction. This article continues to discuss key findings from Orange Cyberdefense's report on cyber extortion activity. 

Continuity Central reports "Cyber Extortion Activity Jumps to New Record in Q1 2023"