Alarm as 92% of firms in US, UK, Australia targeted by phishing in 12 months

Today’s cyber-landscape is tough for small and medium businesses. But no matter their size, security is far too important for these small and medium businesses to ignore.

Phishing attacks have become an increasing concern for organisations worldwide, with a new survey showing that 92% of companies were targeted in the past year, and 86% of them experienced negative consequences as a result.

The Egress survey of 500 cybersecurity leaders in the US, UK, and Australia who use Microsoft 365 also found that 54% of those companies suffered financial losses due to customer churn, while 47% experienced reputational damage.

Additionally, 27% of companies had to undertake lengthy remediations, while 9% faced legal repercussions.

The survey also showed that employees were punished for successful phishing attacks, with 30% of cases seeing disciplinary action taken and 22% of companies reporting dismissals.

Also, 72% of cybersecurity leaders expressed concern over the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in email phishing attacks, with financial organizations the most worried.

“Phishing has become an increasingly sophisticated cyber threat as cybercriminals continue to evolve their tactics,” said a statement by Atlas VPN.

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The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology to create more sophisticated attacks was identified as a major concern by 72% of cybersecurity leaders, who believe that it could be used to automate the phishing process, create highly personalized phishing emails, and use deepfake technology.

“The use of deepfake technology to add video and voice capabilities to phishing attacks can make them even more dangerous,” Atlas VPN added.

It is crucial that organizations prioritize cybersecurity measures and remain vigilant in their efforts to protect themselves against these threats.

Chege Njuguna