A recent investigation sheds light on a surge of 40% in digital attacks aimed at government bodies and public service sectors.

In the Quarterly Global Threat Intelligence Investigation, BlackBerry Limited presented its findings, showing that the company’s AI-empowered digital protection services thwarted a total of 55,000 separate attacks during the span from March to May 2023.

Further significant points highlighted in the investigation

Frequency of digital attacks escalates: In the past quarter, the firm thwarted over 1.5 million assaults. Threat actors rolled out an average of 1.7 novel malware instances per minute, marking a 13 percent hike from the prior reporting term’s average of 1.5 novel instances per minute. This demonstrates the assailants’ efforts to diversify their attack methods in order to evade defensive barriers.

Healthcare and financial service sectors remain prime targets: The healthcare sector, due to its intersection of invaluable data and vital services, forms a profitable bullseye for digital criminals. The company intercepted over 109,922 attacks in the healthcare domain over the previous quarter. With the consistent threat from ransomware groups targeting organizations within these sectors with data theft malware, the investigation underscores the significance of protecting patient data and ensuring the unimpeded provision of crucial medical services.

Rising threats from mobile malware: Institutions within the financial services sector confront recurrent risks from smartphone-oriented common malware, ransomware assaults, and an increase in mobile banking malware exploiting the expanding trend of digital banking services. The investigation delves into the digital protection challenges faced by the financial industry as threat actors exploit the preference for online banking.