New Report Finds Global Ransomware Damage Costs Predicted to Exceed $8 Billion in 2018


Report sponsored by KnowBe4 and conducted by Cybersecurity Ventures finds ransomware to attack a business every 14 seconds by the end of 2019

KnowBe4, provider of the world’s largest security awareness training and simulated phishing platform, today announced a new report on ransomware, which found that global damages related to ransomware are predicted to exceed $8 billion in 2018.

With the growing proliferation of ransomware, organizations are struggling to outpace the criminals. In 2019, Cybersecurity Ventures predicts that global damages related to ransomware will reach $11.5 billion. The research findings also predicted that ransomware will attack a business every 14 seconds by the end of 2019. Sonicwall just reported a 300% year-over-year growth in ransomware.Cybersecurity Ventures

“Ransomware is the new normal; it’s here to stay and is growing in sophistication and frequency,” said Stu Sjouwerman, CEO, KnowBe4. “Bad guys choose to hack people if they can; they are the softest target and easily manipulated with social engineering. Organizations need to protect their infrastructure with a new security layer: a human firewall.”   

Not only is ransomware causing financial damages, attacks are also putting human life and wellness at risk as they disrupt medical services and government services such as 911 call centers and emergency dispatching services. New-school security awareness training is a proven method to significantly reduce the risk of these types of attacks.

For more information on KnowBe4, visit www.knowbe4.com. For more information on Cybersecurity Ventures, please visit https://cybersecurityventures.com/.

 

About KnowBe4

KnowBe4, the provider of the world’s largest integrated security awareness training and simulated phishing platform, is used by more than 18,000 organizations worldwide. Founded by data and IT security expert Stu Sjouwerman, KnowBe4 helps organizations address the human element of security by raising awareness of ransomware, CEO fraud and other social engineering tactics through a new-school approach to security awareness training. Kevin Mitnick, internationally recognized computer security expert and KnowBe4’s Chief Hacking Officer, helped design KnowBe4’s training based on his well-documented social engineering tactics. Thousands of organizations trust KnowBe4 to mobilize their end-users as the last line of corporate IT defense.

Number 231 on the 2017 Inc. 500 list, #70 on 2017 Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500 and #2 in Cybersecurity Ventures Cybersecurity 500. KnowBe4 is headquartered in Tampa Bay, Florida with European offices in England, the Netherlands and Germany and offices in South Africa and Singapore.

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