Report: Data extortion intrusions spike

Cyberattacks involving data extortion reached 6,800 last year, which is nearly 63% higher than in 2024, fueled by the escalated activity of the Qilin, Sp1d3r Hunters, and Clop ransomware operations, reports Cybersecurity Dive.

More than 50% of all organizations impacted by extortion attacks were in the U.S., with most intrusions aimed at consumer and industrial product vendors, consulting companies, and manufacturing firms, an analysis from Intel 471 showed. Initial access brokers were found to have mostly targeted remote access portals last year. Attacks also entailed the abuse of over 40% of 520 security bugs reported last year. While AI is expected to accelerate active exploitation of discovered vulnerabilities, the technology will still not be "the core driver" of intrusions due to its cost and complexity, according to Intel 471 researchers.

"We predict targeted escalation in areas where AI demonstrably increases the return on investment such as deepfake-driven impersonation, AI-generated voice fraud targeting high-value individuals, and amplified synthetic media in influence operations," said Intel 471.