BlackBerry threat report finds government and public services facing 40% more cyberattacks

BlackBerry Limited has released its latest Quarterly Global Threat Intelligence Report, highlighting a 40 percent increase in cyberattacks targeting government agencies and the public services sector, with the company’s AI-driven cybersecurity solutions stopping 55,000 individual attacks overall between March and May 2023. “Governments and public services, such as public transit, electricity, water services, schools, and non-profit organisations, stand as unfortunate bullseyes for cybercriminals and other threat actors, whose attacks seek to wreak maximum havoc and who often times face very little resistance,” said Ismael Valenzuela, Vice President of Threat Research and Intelligence at BlackBerry. “With limited resources and immature cyber defense programs, these organisations are struggling to defend against the double pronged threat of both nation states and cybercriminals. Now, more than ever, they need access to actionable cyber intelligence to direct and strengthen their security strategies, while safeguarding the vital services, institutions, and trust upon which our societies thrive.” Other highlights from the latest BlackBerry Global Threat Intelligence Report include: Increase in Cyberattacks Per Minute: Over the past 90 days, BlackBerry stopped over 1.5 million attacks. Threat actors deployed an average of 1.7 new malware samples per minute, a 13 percent increase from the previous reporting period’s average of 1.5 new samples per minute, highlighting attackers’ work to diversify their tooling to bypass defensive controls. Healthcare and Financial Services Industries Are Most Targeted: In healthcare, the convergence of valuable data and critical services presents a lucrative target for cybercriminals. BlackBerry stopped over 109,922 attacks across the healthcare sector over the past 90 days. As ransomware groups continue to target organisations in these industries with information-stealing malware, the report highlights the importance of securing patient data and safeguarding the delivery of essential medical services. Mobile Malware on the Rise: Financial services institutions are facing persistent threats through smartphone-centric commodity malware, ransomware attacks, and the rise of mobile banking malware targeting the growing trend of digital banking services. The report explores cybersecurity challenges for the financial sector as threat actors exploit an online-banking-first mindset. To learn more, download a copy of BlackBerry’s Global Threat Intelligence Report at BlackBerry.com. For Editorial Inquiries Contact: Editor Kym Bergmann at [email protected] For Advertising Inquiries Contact: Director of Sales Graham Joss at [email protected]