More than 1K ransomware attacks reported against critical infrastructure

SecurityWeek reports that ransomware attacks against critical infrastructure organizations have totaled 1,137 from November 2013 to January 31, 2022, according to the newest version of Temple University's critical infrastructure ransomware attacks database. While only 258 ransomware attacks have been recorded in 2021, compared with 406 attacks in 2020, attacks may not have been really less prevalent last year as many victims may have been grouped rather than individually reported. "Another possibility is that attention was more focused on some attacks (Colonial and JBS) and so there might have been less focus/reporting on other incidents," said Temple University CARE Lab Director and Associate Professor Aunshul Rege, who led the project. The database also showed that most attacks between 2020 and 2021 involved ransoms of over $5 million, compared with only up to $5,000 between 2018 and 2019. Health care, government, and education were the most targeted sectors over the past four years, researchers found.