Cyber Crime Statistics in 2019: 10 Facts that Might Surprise You

Each year, cyber crime continues to grow, infiltrating business through methods like phishing, ransomware and social engineering. Cyber criminals have found the path of least resistance and they are running with it. Cyber crime statistics in 2019 indicate that cyber crime has grown in leaps and bounds over the previous year.

According to zdnet.com, the average cost of cyber crime for an organization increased $1.4 million over the past year, to $13.0 million, and the average number of security breaches in the last year rose by 11 percent from 130 to 145. What does this mean?

• Cyber crime taking more time to resolve
• It is becoming more expensive to fix
• Everyone is a target

For now anyway, this is our new normal and hackers have evolved, adapted and they realize the most effective method is to target humans, the weakest link in cyber security.

2019 Cyber Crime Statistics

Check out these startling statistics that paint a very clear picture of cyber crime today – and learn what to do to stop it from happening to you!

1) Ransomware Remains the Biggest Threat to Small Businesses

In 2019, 85% of MSPs report ransomware as the most common malware threat to SMBs. (Source: Datto)

2) Small Businesses Are the Primary Target

On average, 1 in 5 small businesses report that they’ve fallen victim to a ransomware attack. Small businesses who don’t outsource their IT services are more at risk. (Source: Strategy Analytics’ proprietary research of the North American SMB market.)

3) 91% of Cyber Attacks Begin with a Phishing Email

Cyber criminals have zeroed in on the #1 most effective type of cyber-attack: phishing emails. As the leading cause of cyber threats, spear phishing involves targeting an individual or group of users by masking the email as a legitimate source like a banking institution or software company like Microsoft.

Hackers use tactics like urgency to get you to open the email without thinking twice and before you know it, you’ve clicked on a cleverly disguised malicious attachment or a link to malware.

Ontech has gone into length to educate users about how to avoid a phishing attack. There are multiple methods of phishing attack prevention that can be very helpful in keeping these attacks at bay. (Source: PhishMe research)

4) In 2019, Hackers Increased the Ransom by 37%

The average ransom requested by hackers is increasing. MSPs report the average requested ransom for SMBs is ~$5,900, up 37%, year-over-year.

Tip: If your business has become victim of a ransomware attack, DO NOT pay the ransom. There is no guarantee you will get your data back and you could be out thousands of dollars for nothing. The best defense against ransomware includes a multi-layered security approach. (Source: Datto)

5) In 2019, the Average Cost of Downtime is WAY Up

($141,000 in 2019 vs. $46,800 in 2018) Yep, you read that right.

Downtime costs are up by 200% year-over-year, and the cost of downtime is 23X greater than the average ransom requested in 2019. (Source: Datto)

6) Ransomware Attacks Occur Every 14 Seconds

Every 14 seconds is the frequency in which a business will fall victim to a ransomware attack this year. Estimates show that this number will INCREASE to every 11 seconds by 2021.

At the very least, it is critical that you have a reliable, regularly tested data backup solution in place so that if you do lose access to your data, a backup can quickly be restored, minimizing downtime and saving you a significant amount of time and money. (Source: Cybersecurity Ventures – 2019 Official Annual Cyber crime Report (ACR))

7) USA is the #1 Target

It’s great to be #1, but not so much when it comes to being the primary target of cyber security attacks. The United States is ranked #1 across all other countries targeted by cyber criminals. (Source: Norton Security)

8) Ransomware Attacks Predicted to Increase 5X by 2021

It is predicted that ransomware attacks against healthcare organizations will increase by 5X between 2017 and 2021.

And consider this – healthcare ranks 15th out of 18 industries when it comes to cybersecurity and research shows hospital employees fall victim to 1 out of every 7 phishing emails.

This creates a tremendous opportunity for security awareness training for healthcare organizations in order to close the gaps and strengthen security from within. (Source: The Cybersecurity Almanac 2019 from Cybersecurity Ventures)

9) Cyber Crime is More Profitable than the Global Illegal Drug Industry

So why do they do it? It’s simple. Although it sounds crazy, cyber crime is now more lucrative than dealing drugs. The illegal drug industry totals around $400 billion/year. In 2018, cyber criminals earned a total of around $600 billion.  (Source: Cybersecurity Ventures)

10) You Can Purchase a Consumer Account for $1 on the Dark Market

With billions of personal records stolen over the years, this creates an excessive amount of credentials for sale on the dark web. This in turn has lowered the cost of consumer accounts. Bank accounts run hackers anywhere between $3-25 each.  (Source: RSA)

The Best Defense is a Good Offense

A solid data backup and disaster recovery plan. A good plan includes a multi-layered security approach.

• Set up a data backup and disaster recovery plan. Also mention security assessment and also security awareness training.
• Set up a data backup and disaster recovery plan. Not only do you need a solid data backup solution in place, you also need to confirm your backup can be restored.
• A security assessment is a good step in determining how and where to close security gaps in your network.
• Security awareness training addresses the biggest threat to cyber security – humans.