Ransomware attacks were up 41 percent in 2019

TechSpot reports ransomware attacks increased 41 percent this year. Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting high-value targets and that's resulting in lucrative payouts. It's estimated that 205,280 organisations fell victim to ransomware in 2019, and that the average payout was $190,946 in the final month of 2019. The attacks are becoming more targeted, sophisticated, and costly.

The revelation comes from a New York Times report that examines the increase in recent ransomware attacks. According to security firm Coveware, the average payment for decryption keys to unlock files was $84,116 in the last quarter of 2019, double what it was during the previous quarter. In the last month of the year, that average jumped to $190,946.

“Anything of value that is smart and connected can be compromised and held for ransom,” said Steve Grobman, the chief technology officer at McAfee. “If critical infrastructure systems are held for ransom, what is our policy going to be for dealing with those?”