CPR reveals a 29% rise in cyberattacks in the UAE as entering Cybersecurity Awareness Month

Check Point Research (CPR) revealed a 29% rise in cyberattacks in the UAE as entering Cybersecurity Awareness Month. The reports show that as we enter Cybersecurity Awareness Month in October, globally, there are 40% more attacks weekly on organizations in 2021 compared to 2020. In comparison, Saudi Arabia has shown a 1% decrease in these attacks compared to 2020 and Kuwait, with a major reduction of 49% in cyberattacks on organizations for the period.

Following a minor drop in the weeks leading up to March 2020, the average weekly number of attacks on each organization increased significantly in the months leading up to March 2021. The average weekly number of attacks on each organization worldwide peaked in September 2021, with over 870 strikes. In March 2020, there were more than twice as many attacks. According to the data, in 2021, the UAE saw an average of 311 weekly attacks per organization, while Saudi Arabia and Kuwait saw 392 and 409 weekly attacks, respectively.

Education/Research, with an average of 1,468 attacks per organization per week (up 60% from 2020), is the sector with the most cyberattacks, followed by Government/Military with 1,082 (up 40%), and Healthcare with 752. (55 percent increase).

Ransomware continues to plague organizations across the world

According to CPR, 1 out of every 61 enterprises will be affected by ransomware each week in 2021, up from 1 out of every 61 in 2020. This year, the ISP/MSP industry has been the most targeted by ransomware. In 2021, 1 out of 36 firms in this industry will be impacted on a weekly basis (32 percent increase from 2020). Healthcare is in second place, with one out of every 44 organizations (a 39 percent rise), followed by software vendors in third place, with one out of every 52 organizations (a 39 percent increase) (21 percent increase). Furthermore, in 2021, the volume of ransomware assaults in Saudi Arabia increased by 43 percent, followed by a 38 percent increase in ransomware attacks in the UAE, compared to 2020. However, Kuwait has shown a 90% decrease in ransomware attacks in 2021 as compared to 2020.

“October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month, and a time for everyone to be reminded about the role they play in ensuring cybersecurity, both locally and across the world,” said Ram Narayanan, Country Manager, Check Point Software Technologies, Middle East.

He added, “The pandemic contributed to the surge in cyber attacks as cybercriminals exploited gaps and vulnerabilities to take advantage of the opportunities presented to them. As cyberattacks are increasing, Check Point Software recommends organizations to adopt a prevention-first approach to cybersecurity to eliminate threats before they can inflict damage”.

The botnet is the malware type that has had the largest impact on businesses, with over 8% of businesses being impacted on a weekly basis (a 9 percent decrease from 2020). Banking malware comes in second at 4.6 percent (up 26 percent), and crypto miners come in third at 4.2 percent (a 22 percent decrease).

Check Point Software’s Threat Prevention technologies recognized the data in this report, which was then stored and processed in Check Point ThreatCloud. ThreatCloud delivers real-time threat intelligence from hundreds of millions of sensors across networks, endpoints, and mobile devices all over the world. Check Point Research, the intelligence and research department of Check Point has added AI-based engines and proprietary research data to the intelligence Check Point software technologies.