Firms in India are facing more cyberattacks than any other country, says Acronis survey

Companies in India are reporting more cyberattacks than any other country in the world in the wake of ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, according to a new survey by cybersecurity firm Acronis.

The survey titled ‘Acronis Cyber Readiness Report 2020’ reveals 56% of companies in India have reported increased IT costs in the past few months, which is two times the global average. The survey was conducted across seventeen countries with India being one of them and 3,400 global companies and remote workers.

According to the survey, 39% of global firms experienced a videoconferencing attack in the past three months. India faced the highest rates of such attacks with 66% of companies reported having encountered videoconferencing attacks.

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It is worth noting that a lot of firms in India and globally have adopted work from home policy and are relying on digital tools such as Zoom, Google Meet, Cisco Webex, and Microsoft Teams to communicate and collaborate. All these platforms have gained massive traction in the past few months.

The survey further highlights a surge in malware attacks such as ransomware during the pandemic. Companies in India faced almost two-fold such attacks than any other country. About 31% of companies reported facing cyberattacks daily. About 50% said they were targeted at least once a week.

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Similarly, there is a surge in phishing attacks. In fact, the survey reports a historic rise in such attacks. The survey pointed out that the rise in phishing was expected as a mere 2% of companies take URL filter into account when evaluating a cybersecurity solution. It added that the oversight has put remote workers at risk to phishing sites. According to the survey, 62% of companies in India acknowledged they were struggling with phishing attempts.

“The cyber threat landscape has changed dramatically during the past few years, and in the last six months in particular. Traditional stand-alone antivirus and backup solutions are unable to protect against modern cyberthreats,” said Serguei “SB” Beloussov, founder and CEO of Acronis.

“Organizations that modernize their stack with integrated data protection and cybersecurity not only gain greater security, they lower their costs and improve efficiencies. The automation and streamlined management of Acronis Cyber Protect 15 means any business can decrease their risk, avoid downtime, and increase their IT team’s productivity,” he added.