As you put the finishing touches on this year’s clever Halloween costume, please take a moment to experience some real terror by reading through a list of scary cybersecurity statistics and trends.
Despite increased attention and an improved approach to cybersecurity, small businesses and nonprofit organizations still face a formidable and growing threat from sophisticated cybercriminals. As a result, your organization must take the necessary steps to stay secure with the help of an experienced IT Support partner.
To give you an alarming overview of the stark challenges your company faces, please take some time to review this list of disturbing statistics and trends compiled by cybersecurity experts.
The information in this article was researched and reported by: Cybersecurity Ventures, Forbes, Comparitech, IBM, Varonis, CSO Online, IT Governance, World Economic Forum, Cisco, Verizon, Sophos, ENISA, Cyber Seek, ISC2, Insurance Journal, Retarus, RSA, IC3, New Horizons, Netcitizen, Tech Jury, SC Magazine, SBA, Microsoft, and Avast.
Scary Cybersecurity Statistics and Trends
1. Worldwide cybercrime costs are estimated to hit $10.5 trillion annually by 2025 and will increase to nearly $24 trillion by 2027.
2. Small businesses are the main targets of 43% of cyberattacks.
3. In 2024, the U.S. Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) has received 880,418 complaints—a nearly 10% increase from 2023 so far.
4. The average cost of a data breach was $4.88 million in 2024, which is the highest average on record. The US has the dubious honor of having the highest average total cost of a data breach at $9.36 million.
5. In the first half of 2024, data breaches exposed 7 billion records. A data breach can cost a company an average of $1.3 million in lost business.
6. When remote work is a factor in a data breach occurring, the average cost per breach rises $173,074.
7. Cybercriminals launch attacks more than 26,000 times a day.
8. $17,700 is lost every minute because of phishing attacks. Phishing attacks account for more than 80 percent of reported cybersecurity incidents.
9. 94% of malware is delivered by email. Smaller organizations with less than 250 employees receive the highest rate of targeted malicious emails at approximately one out of every three hundred emails.
10. Approximately 24,000 malicious mobile apps are blocked daily online.
11. Ransomware victims have doubled over the last year with the average cost of ransomware recovery being nearly $3 million.
12. Only 8% of businesses that pay ransom to cybercriminals receive all of their data back safely.
13. The average cost to companies related to downtime is 24 times higher than the average ransom amount.
14. 66% of supply chain attacks focused on the suppliers’ code in order to further compromise targeted customers. Devices and networks of 3rd party partners and vendors are frequent targets of cybercriminals looking for easier access to an organization.
15. The average time companies require to identify and contain a data breach is 283 days.
16. By the time a company discovers that its sensitive data has been compromised, much of it will have been extracted, repurposed, or resold on the dark web. Cybercriminals have had so much success with their nefarious efforts that sensitive information can be purchased cheaply on the dark web. For example, a bad actor can purchase a person’s online identity for only a few dollars, an X/Twitter account for $2, and a Facebook account for $9. More potentially lucrative items such as bank accounts or credit cards will cost anywhere from $25 -$250.
17. Security experts say cyber fatigue, or apathy to proactively defending against cyberattacks, affects as much as 42% of companies.
18. Nearly 60% of employees don’t know what steps to take in the event of a successful cybersecurity attack.
19. Human error is consistently the #1 cause of cybersecurity breaches, accounting for 95% of all data breaches.
20. Nearly 80% of companies do not have an incident response plan in the event of a successful data breach.
21. The Small Business Administration (SBA) released a survey revealing that 88% of small business owners think their businesses are vulnerable to cyberattacks.
22. Data security experts estimate that the likelihood a cybercrime entity is detected and prosecuted in the U.S. is around 0.05%.
23. An average of 17% of all sensitive files at companies are accessible to all their employees.
24. The password “admin” is used in IoT devices more than 20 million times. Another common password in use is “password.” 83% of users utilize what experts consider as weak passwords with many never changing the original security credentials on their devices. To make matters worse, 60% of companies have more than 500 accounts with non-expiring passwords.
25. US cyber insurance premiums surged 50% in the last year, reaching $7.2 billion in premiums.
26. In 2024, 76% of organizations reported insider attacks, up from 66% in 2019. 74% of companies admit they are moderately to extremely vulnerable to these threats.
27. 90% of cybersecurity professionals find detecting insider threats is as or more difficult than defending against external threats.
28. 54% of companies say their IT departments are not sophisticated enough to handle advanced cyberattacks.
29. 70 % of cybersecurity professionals report that their organizations are understaffed, which has hampered multiple functional and operational elements of their cybersecurity.
30. There are nearly 470,000 job openings in the US cybersecurity industry, and there are 3.5 million unfilled cybersecurity jobs globally.
Consult with an IT Security Expert
After taking a little time to digest these alarming statistics and trends, we recommend that you consult with an expert on IT and cybersecurity such as Network Depot to best protect your organization. A reliable IT Support partner will comprehensively evaluate your company’s current cybersecurity state and work closely with you to fill your security gaps.
Your IT partner will make valuable recommendations and be with you every step of the way to help implement the most effective cybersecurity tools, staff training, and data security processes and policies. Your trusted IT Support partner will also provide continuous security monitoring of your network and will ensure that your organization’s cyber defenses are updated and remain at the highest security level.
In addition to taking these positive steps, remember to experience the fun of the Halloween season by enjoying costume parties, jack-o-lanterns, haunted houses, hayrides, and your favorite treats. We wish you an enjoyable break from the stressful cybersecurity situation!
Happy Halloween 2024!