19 March 2021

A cocktail of factors made 2020 a “perfect storm” for cybercrime, accroding to a new report from security firm SonicWall.

Remote working due to the coronavirus pandemic, proliferation of cloud-based solutions and apps, plus a rise in the value of cryptocurrencies all contributed to growth in cybercriminal activity 

SonicWall said ransomware reached new heights, with the number of incidents growing by 62%. The Ryuk variant, for example, rose from obscurity to stardom last year, eventually overtaking the top-ranking Cerber variant. It now boasts more than 109.9 million detected cases worldwide.

However, there was also a 74% increase in never-before-seen malware variants year-on-year, SonicWall said, with 268,326 new malware strains detected.

“Threats that were once thought to be two or three years away are now a reality, with do-it-yourself, cloud-based tools creating an army of cybercriminals armed with the same devastating force and impact of a nation-state or larger criminal enterprise,” said Bill Conner, SonicWall president and CEO. “Organisations must remain vigilant and proactive in hardening their cybersecurity posture.”