• Home
  • Cyber Crime
  • Cyber warfare
  • APT
  • Data Breach
  • Deep Web
  • Digital ID
  • Hacking
  • Hacktivism
  • Intelligence
  • Internet of Things
  • Laws and regulations
  • Malware
  • Mobile
  • Reports
  • Security
  • Social Networks
  • Terrorism
  • ICS-SCADA
  • POLICIES
  • Contact me
MUST READ

SECURITY AFFAIRS MALWARE NEWSLETTER ROUND 55

 | 

Security Affairs newsletter Round 534 by Pierluigi Paganini – INTERNATIONAL EDITION

 | 

Law enforcement operations seized BlackSuit ransomware gang’s darknet sites

 | 

Arizona woman sentenced for aiding North Korea in U.S. IT job fraud scheme

 | 

Operation CargoTalon targets Russia’s aerospace with EAGLET malware,

 | 

Unpatched flaw in EoL LG LNV5110R cameras lets hackers gain Admin access

 | 

Koske, a new AI-Generated Linux malware appears in the threat landscape

 | 

Mitel patches critical MiVoice MX-ONE Auth bypass flaw

 | 

Coyote malware is first-ever malware abusing Windows UI Automation

 | 

SonicWall fixed critical flaw in SMA 100 devices exploited in Overstep malware attacks

 | 

DSPM & AI Are Booming: $17.87B and $4.8T Markets by 2033

 | 

Stealth backdoor found in WordPress mu-Plugins folder

 | 

U.S. CISA adds CrushFTP, Google Chromium, and SysAid flaws to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

 | 

U.S. CISA urges FCEB agencies to fix two Microsoft SharePoint flaws immediately and added them to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

 | 

Sophos fixed two critical Sophos Firewall vulnerabilities

 | 

French Authorities confirm XSS.is admin arrested in Ukraine

 | 

Microsoft linked attacks on SharePoint flaws to China-nexus actors

 | 

Cisco confirms active exploitation of ISE and ISE-PIC flaws

 | 

SharePoint under fire: new ToolShell attacks target enterprises

 | 

CrushFTP zero-day actively exploited at least since July 18

 | 
  • Home
  • Cyber Crime
  • Cyber warfare
  • APT
  • Data Breach
  • Deep Web
  • Digital ID
  • Hacking
  • Hacktivism
  • Intelligence
  • Internet of Things
  • Laws and regulations
  • Malware
  • Mobile
  • Reports
  • Security
  • Social Networks
  • Terrorism
  • ICS-SCADA
  • POLICIES
  • Contact me
  • Home
  • Breaking News
  • Cyber Crime
  • Malware
  • Reports
  • Ransomware attacks break records in 2023: the number of victims rose by 128%

Ransomware attacks break records in 2023: the number of victims rose by 128%

Pierluigi Paganini January 19, 2024

Ransomware groups claimed that they successfully targeted 4191 victims in 2023, Cybernews researchers report.

According to the Ransomlooker tool, the number of ransomware attack victims increased by 128.17% compared to the previous year (2022), with 1837 additional incidents.

Based on Ransomlooker, a free Cybernews tool for monitoring the dark web and other hidden areas of the internet, more ransomware attacks occurred in spring and summer, with 1253 and 1275 victims, compared to winter and autumn, which had 611 and 1052 incidents, respectively. Winter was the least active time (14.6% of attacks in 2023), while summer was the most active for ransomware attacks (30.4%).

Furthermore, based on findings from the Ransomlooker tool, there were an average of 36 successful ransomware attacks per day in 2023, or more than one successful ransomware attack claim against a company per hour.

The most targeted country in the world: the USA

Ransomlooker data shows that the most targeted countries over the past four years are the same top five countries: the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, and France.

The US consistently takes the first position, significantly surpassing other countries, with a victim count sometimes nearly ten times greater than the second-ranked country. Other economically and technologically advanced countries consistently maintaining a presence in the top ten include Italy, Australia, and Spain.

What is more unexpected is the continued inclusion of India and Brazil on the top 12 list despite their less progressive economies. However, this correlation aligns with their comparatively limited ability to invest in advanced cybersecurity practices and greater susceptibility to successful ransom attacks.

The most active group in 2023: LockBit

According to the data presented by the Cybernews research team, 66 active ransomware groups were identified and operating within the digital landscape in 2023. The top 10 groups, based on the number of victims, collectively account for 59% of the total victims in 2023.

LockBit remained the most active group through 2023. They claimed responsibility for most victims, with 1009 incidents constituting nearly a quarter of all ransomware victims in 2023. This group primarily focused its attacks on the construction, manufacturing/industrial, and retail industries.

Top targeted companies: Stanford University, Volt, CoinBase

According to data from Ransomlooker, the top 10 industries targeted by ransomware groups in 2023 were IT services and IT consulting, construction, manufacturing and industrial, retail, hospitals and health care, insurance, law practice, real estate, software development, and machinery manufacturing.

The data shows a shift in ransomware targets over the past three years. Previously dominated by the construction industry, the IT sector now claims the top spot in 2023.

In the IT service and consulting sector, Stanford University, Volt, and CoinBase were reportedly identified by the Ransomlooker tool as the top companies targeted by ransomware gangs based on their annual revenue in 2023.

You can read the full report here, the data provided in the report have been collected up to December 19th, 2023.

Follow me on Twitter: @securityaffairs and Facebook and Mastodon

Pierluigi Paganini

(SecurityAffairs – hacking, ransomware)


facebook linkedin twitter

Cybercrime Hacking hacking news information security news IT Information Security malware Pierluigi Paganini ransomware Security Affairs Security News

you might also like

Pierluigi Paganini July 27, 2025
SECURITY AFFAIRS MALWARE NEWSLETTER ROUND 55
Read more
Pierluigi Paganini July 27, 2025
Security Affairs newsletter Round 534 by Pierluigi Paganini – INTERNATIONAL EDITION
Read more

leave a comment

newsletter

Subscribe to my email list and stay
up-to-date!

    recent articles

    SECURITY AFFAIRS MALWARE NEWSLETTER ROUND 55

    Malware / July 27, 2025

    Security Affairs newsletter Round 534 by Pierluigi Paganini – INTERNATIONAL EDITION

    Breaking News / July 27, 2025

    Law enforcement operations seized BlackSuit ransomware gang’s darknet sites

    Cyber Crime / July 26, 2025

    Arizona woman sentenced for aiding North Korea in U.S. IT job fraud scheme

    Intelligence / July 26, 2025

    Operation CargoTalon targets Russia’s aerospace with EAGLET malware,

    Intelligence / July 25, 2025

    To contact me write an email to:

    Pierluigi Paganini :
    pierluigi.paganini@securityaffairs.co

    LEARN MORE

    QUICK LINKS

    • Home
    • Cyber Crime
    • Cyber warfare
    • APT
    • Data Breach
    • Deep Web
    • Digital ID
    • Hacking
    • Hacktivism
    • Intelligence
    • Internet of Things
    • Laws and regulations
    • Malware
    • Mobile
    • Reports
    • Security
    • Social Networks
    • Terrorism
    • ICS-SCADA
    • POLICIES
    • Contact me

    Copyright@securityaffairs 2024

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
    Cookie SettingsAccept All
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities...
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
    Non-necessary
    Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
    SAVE & ACCEPT