According to a new study from PreciseSecurity.com, almost a quarter (23.56%) of all ransomware encryption attacks in 2019 were encountered with the WannaCry virus. Ransomware attacks against government agencies, healthcare organizations, the energy sector, and education continue to increase. While the effects of some simple ransomware can be reversed, more advanced malware exploits a technique called crypto-viral extortion to put money in the hands of cybercriminals. WannaCry targets computers running Microsoft's Windows operating system, encrypts your data, and demands a ransom payment in cryptocurrency to get it back. The WannaCry ransomware attack is estimated to have affected 230,000 computers worldwide and caused €4 billion in damage. Most users who have fallen victim to WannaCry have done so because they have not updated their systems to the latest version of Windows, so updating regular software and operating systems is an essential step to stay protected from ransomware.
spam emails
PreciseSecurity.com 2019 research data shows that phishing scams were the most common cause of ransomware infection globally last year. Over 67% of MSP users have reported ransomware attacks caused by spam and phishing. In fact, the company's research found that spam accounted for 55% of global email traffic in 2019, which explains the large number of ransomware infections. Lack of cybersecurity training also played a role in the large number of infections with a 36% share of the combined number of ransomware attacks that occurred last year. Weak passwords led to 30% of infections and bad user practices caused a quarter of all ransomware attacks. The WannaCry ransomware attack in 2017 caused a lot of damage, but it also helped raise awareness about the myriad of cyber threats online.- Protect your devices from the latest cyber threats with the best antivirus software