Over 3,400 High and Critical Cyber Alerts Recorded in H1 2024

August 22, 2024 | Critical Start’s Cyber Research Unit reported over 3,438 high and critical cyber alerts in the first half of 2024, with the U.S. seeing a 46.15% rise in attacks compared to 2023. Manufacturing remains the most targeted sector, with 377 confirmed ransomware and data leak incidents.

Key Findings:

• Professional Services: 15% increase in attacks, totaling 351 incidents.
• Healthcare: Ransomware and database leaks surged by 180% in February, linked to major provider breaches.
• Technology: 12.75% decrease in attacks.

Experts warn that breaches will likely rise, particularly in healthcare and critical infrastructure. Emerging threats include a shift toward smaller businesses in business email compromise (BEC) attacks, a 3,000% increase in deepfake fraud attempts, and abuse of open-source repositories.

To combat these threats, organizations are advised to implement zero-trust security models and enhance real-time threat intelligence.

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