In recent years, India has been struggling with a steep surge in cyberattacks, as per CERT-In, a governmental body entrusted with safeguarding the nation’s cyberspace. In 2020, the agency recorded a staggering 11.58 lakh cyberattacks, a figure that surged to 14.02 lakhs in 2021, only to slightly dip to 13.91 lakhs in 2022.
Although the number of reported cyberattacks fell slightly in 2022 as compared to 2021, it is a genuine concern that not all these attacks were reported, potentially resulting in a significantly higher actual number of attacks.
A recent report from cybersecurity company CloudSEK revealed a startling trend in India. The number of cyberattacks targeting Indian government agencies more than doubled in 2022, making India the most frequently targeted country globally in this regard. In 2021, India accounted for 6.3% of the total cyberattacks on government agencies, while this number jumped to 13.7% in 2022. With its ambitious digital aspirations, India continues to remain the prime target of international hackers.
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It has also been predicted that there will be a significant rise in the number of malware programmes that have been created specifically to target firms in the Indian BFSI sector. In 2022, CERT-In reported that ransomware attacks jumped 51% in the first half of the year. With the relatively easier availability of ransomware as a service kits that enable less skilled hackers to carry out attacks, ransomware will remain a potential threat for Indian banks and financial services firms in 2023. The average cost of a data breach in India reached ₹17.9 crore in 2023, an all-time high and almost 28% increase since 2020, according to IBM Security’s Cost of a Data Breach Report.
All these statistics are extremely concerning for all the enterprises in India. As the nation progresses towards digital transformations, data breaches and cyberattacks will also increase hand-in-hand, and the only way to curb this is to have an effective cybersecurity strategy in place.
Organizations facing cyberattacks can suffer financial, reputational and legal losses. A security breach like, the theft of financial details or corporate information, can lead to significant monetary losses for a company. A cyberattack may harm the business’s reputation and diminish the trust customers have in the company. Consequently, the business may lose customers, experience a decrease in sales, and suffer financial losses. If data is intentionally or unintentionally compromised due to the absence of adequate security measures, the organization can face regulatory sanctions and fines.
Indian agencies have always been a soft target owing to lenient cybersecurity norms and access to a huge trove of data. With non-effective cybersecurity solutions deployed to protect critical user data in many sectors, the recent past has seen both state and non-state actors looking to exploit vulnerabilities in the system.
Implementing a robust cybersecurity strategy that includes various solutions like Firewalls, Network Security including Network Detection & Response and Network Forensics will be pivotal for businesses to keep their critical data and financial assets protected. Indigenous cybersecurity companies like Vehere, renowned for their innovative and cost-efficient network security technology, have risen to confront these challenges. Their mission is to shield businesses from malicious threat actors, fortify the cybersecurity landscape and ensure a secure digital environment.
(By Praveen Jaiswal, Founder and Chief Operating Officer, Vehere. Views are personal)