Firms Left Bankrupt By Hackers, Leading To a Loss Of $4 Billion

New charges are placed on Hackers right now. These states of Global losses due to cyber attacks, including the expenses incurred on the cost of damage control, and productivity loss, nearly amounting to $4 billion, as witnessed in the first half of 2017. As per the reports, titled ‘2017 Midyear Security Roundup’, published by global cybersecurity firm Trend Micro, businesses are posed with the threat of increased ransomware, Business Email Compromise (BEC) scams and Internet Of Things (IoT) attacks. The success of Trend Micro boasts of detecting around more than 82 million ransomware threats, along with more than 3,000 BEC attempts in the first half of the year, highlighting the importance of cybersecurity investments. Max Cheng, Chief Information Officer, Trend Micro, further added in a statement that, “Major cyber attacks against enterprises globally have continued to be a hot-button topic this year and this trend is likely to continue through the remainder of 2017. Enterprises need to prioritize funds for effective security upfront, as the cost of a breach is frequently more than a company’s budget can sustain”. 2017 April and June saw ransomware attacks “WannaCrypt” and “Petya” affecting thousands of companies on a global sphere. To This, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) added that BEC scams have increased the total of global losses, amounting to $5.3 billion. The report also added about the first half of the year, witnessing a rise in IoT attacks and showed that industrial robots can be compromised, which might amount to massive financial damage and productivity loss. Lastly, there was also increased abuse of social media with the rise of cyber-propaganda, the spread of fake news and bad publicity, which can cause serious financial ramifications for businesses.