Cyberattacks doubled in 2021; Russia leads

Throughout 2021, cybercriminals increased attacks on government and commercial enterprises — at their peak, an average of 925 incidents per week per organization. According to Check Point Research.

According to researchers, the total number of cyberattacks on corporate networks increased by 50% compared with 2020.

The most affected sector was educational and research institutions – 1,605 attacks per week (a 75% increase). Next came the government and military sector – 1,136 incidents (47% higher than in 2020), as well as the communications sector – 1,079 attacks (up 51%).

As Chainalysis noted, a key driver of the surge in hacking activity was a vulnerability in the popular Java library Log4j identified in late December 2021. It was used to install hidden miners and other malware.

Experts advise organizations operating in vulnerable sectors to promptly implement security patches for their systems, segment local networks, and train employees to recognise potential threats.

As Chainalysis noted, criminals stole from users in 2021 more than $7.7 billion in cryptocurrencies. More than a third of this amount came from rug pull schemes.

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