The number of ransomware attacks continues to increase worldwide. This is despite a previous dip in the number of attacks, NCC Group researchers note based on figures from November this year.
Whereas in the month of October, NCC Group researchers noted a small dip in the number of global ransomware attacks, November has unfortunately turned out to be the opposite. In the past month, researchers noted a total of a whopping 442 ransomware attacks. This compares to a total of 341 a month earlier. There have been 67 percent more attacks in November 2023 than in the same month the year before.
The attacks in November bring the total number of ransomware attacks this year to 4,276. This exceeds researchers’ expectations, who predicted the number would be four thousand by the end of the year. With one month left in 2023, that number has already been passed.
Compared to developments in 2021 and 2022, this is a strong upward trend, so researchers are holding their breath for next year.
Industry, North America and LockBit 3.0
The survey further shows that last month, the industrial sector bore the biggest brunt from ransomware, followed by retail and healthcare. The most attacked region was North America, followed by Europe.
The researchers also again ranked the most active ransomware gangs in November 2023. Topping the list is LockBit 3.0. Attacks by this ransomware gang increased 73 percent in November compared to October this year. Across 2023, LockBit 3.0 has been the most active gang each month apart from March, June and July 2023, when Clop was the most active.
The number two ransomware gang in November 2023 was BackCat, followed by Play. The latter gang rose the most in the past month.
Return of Carbanak
Finally, NCC Group specialists are also paying close attention to the return of an old familiar ransomware gang: Carbanak. Carbanak has been around since 2014 and focuses mainly on banking malware as well as penetrating financial systems and hijacking them. They do this using sophisticated phishing techniques that mainly target bank employees.
Also read: LockBit 3.0 most active ransomware gang in August
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