Top Industries That Are Vulnerable To Cyber Attacks

Cyber-attacks have become a threat to everyone. Cybercrime has taken many twists and turns, affecting almost every business in irreversible ways. By 2025, cybercrime may cost the globe more than US$10.5 trillion per year according to researchers. Mostly, cyber attackers focus on the sectors which are trending in the market. They target the industry and attack top companies in every possible way they can. The damage caused by a cyberattack is quite expensive and hard to recover. This is why companies need to be aware of the hackers and the possible threats that could affect their business. Based on recent events, here I am going to talk about the top industries that are vulnerable to hackers and cyber-attacks. Cyber Security online course helps you upskill in all aspects to become the best cyber professional.

• Banking

The banking industry is a prominent target of attackers because of many common reasons. For starters, money and personal information are the things usually attackers target, and banking has plenty of it. This might be the main reason why cyber hackers are chasing after banking sectors.  According to a Varonis analysis, the finance sector has an aggregate of more than 350,000 accessible critical information, giving the most vulnerable businesses to assaults. Several approaches are used by hackers to carry out security assaults. Phishing is one of the significant problems in the financial sector, as it has been for several years. The banking industry is also being targeted by Advanced Persistent Threats, which combine secrecy and a good strategy to harvest information and money. Business Email Compromise is a major threat to financial services security. DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks are also a big danger to the banking sector, with DDoS and web app assaults against financial institutions up 31% since 2015.

• Gaming

By 2022, the online gaming sector is expected to generate about $200 billion in revenue. Despite this, certain sectors of the business continue to place a low priority on security, putting firms and their consumers in danger from hackers. According to research, cybercrime in the gaming business has increased by a whopping 340 percent in the last year. Industries in gaming might face threats like phishing, trolls, bullying, cheats, frauds, character and inventory theft, and compromise of electronic devices. Learn about various cyber vulnerabilities with this comprehensive Cyber Security threats blog. 

 

• Government

It's no wonder that government organization data include highly secret and sensitive identifiable details, making them a prime target for hackers. Considering organizations that handle and keep private information such as Security Numbers, financial information, contact details, and biometrics such as fingerprint data. Each of these pieces of information is not only exposed but they might also be used to launch an assault. Malicious attackers have more opportunities to get access to current systems or change various elements if they have more knowledge. In 2020, there were 79 ransomware assaults on US federal institutions, costing $18.8 billion in recovery expenses and disruption. Only 38% of state and municipal personnel are educated in ransomware protection, despite the fact that ransomware accounts for the bulk of all intrusions on government entities.

 

• Energy and Utilities

Cyber-attacks on energy platforms are particularly vulnerable, according to security experts. Hackers have the ability to inflict extensive power outages, jeopardizing crucial defense and security assets and putting millions of people in peril. An attacker can easily build nuclear installations, electric grids, and energy-producing facilities all over the world since they can obtain command from close distances or across large distances. The interruption of the Colonial Pipeline in May 2021 is only one of several recent examples of ransomware assaults on our energy and utility providers. After all, our economy and daily life are practically powered by the energy system and utilities.

 

• Healthcare

The frequency of cyberattacks affecting the medical industry has continued to increase, posing a significant threat. Over 90% of all healthcare businesses have found approximately one security breach in the previous three years, which includes denial of service, malicious code, ransomware, and more. When hackers seized leverage of heightened vulnerabilities during the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020, the situation only became worse. Cybercriminals in healthcare institutions more than quadrupled in 2019 than the previous year, with malware accounting for over a third of all attacks. Last year, security breaches and ransomware cost the sector an estimated $4 billion, and the sector was responsible for further than four out of 10 attacks.

These are the industries that are expected to be vulnerable to cyber-attacks. These industries have already been facing critical issues regarding security. Given the data about the attacks on these industries in the past few years, it is clear that attackers are focusing on industries that are trending and have scope for lots of information. These industries should start adopting cyber security and take all the measures required to protect themselves from malicious attacks, otherwise, it will become a miserable situation for companies.