Study reveals impact of cyberattacks on German businesses

Cyberattacks have caused significant disruptions for numerous companies in Germany over the past year, with the information and industrial sectors being particularly affected. A recent study highlights that approximately one in seven companies in the information sector and one in eight in the industrial sector experienced damages from cyber incidents in 2025, according to a recent report by CSO Online.

The study, conducted by the Center for European Economic Research (ZEW), surveyed around 1,100 German companies. Larger businesses, defined as those with at least 100 employees, reported damages more frequently, with one-fifth in the information sector and 17% in the industrial sector affected. The most common impact reported was operational disruption, occurring in 9% of information firms and 7% of industrial firms.

While financial losses, ransom demands, and data exfiltration were also reported, they occurred to a lesser extent. The recent large-scale cyberattack on Deutsche Bahn, which impacted its booking and information systems including the DB Navigator app and bahn.de, serves as a prominent example of the daily cyber threats companies face.

Source: CSO Online