There was an 81% year-over-year increase in ransomware attacks

Research from Black Kite analyzed nearly 4,900 ransomware attacks to understand malicious actors and their new techniques, their evolving operations and their global impact. Some key findings from the report include: 

• Between April 2023 and March 2024, there were 4,893 ransomware attacks reported.
• The United States was the most targeted country, with approximately 2300 attacks. 
• Out of the 15 most active ransomware groups, nine are newcomers. 

The report finds that attacks are not only escalating but accelerating, suggesting ransomware groups are becoming more aggressive. The succession of attacks is increasing, sometimes within the span of a few days. This suggests that ransomware groups are monitoring each other’s activities in order to leverage an organization’s weakness after a preceding attack. Furthermore, ransomware groups are more frequently targeting smaller businesses (companies with a revenue that is less than $20 million) rather than the resource-rich organizations frequently targeted in the past.