Education sector worst hit by cyber threats from July-Sept: Seqrite

PUNE: The education sector saw the largest number of cyber threats in July-September, accounting for 30% of cyber-threats targeting Indian enterprises, according to the Seqrite Threat Report Q3 2019.
Seqrite, the enterprise security arm of Quick Heal Technologies, detected over 38 million threats overall in the quarter, an increase of four million from the previous quarter and 10 million from the first quarter of 2019.

Targeting the education sector indicates a major shift in the sector-wise priorities amongst cybercriminals and underscores a willingness to exploit the weaker security infrastructures at educational institutions to create maximum disruption.

Other industries that remain at high risk include manufacturing, BFSI, media and entertainment, and professional services – underlining that no sector remains immune from the growing cybersecurity challenge in India.

Sanjay Katkar, Joint Managing Director and CTO – Quick Heal Technologies, said, “A globe-spanning industry by itself, cybercrime today has emerged as one of the biggest business challenges for modern-day businesses….In the face of the growing cybersecurity challenge highlighted in the report, it is important that Indian organisations across industries understand and acknowledge the heightened severity and sophistication of the threat landscape.”

The report also shows an evolution in attack methodologies, like the emergence of sophisticated ransomware like LockerGoga. Unsecured Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) was also targeted by ransomware such as TFlower to compromise the security of corporate enterprises and government agencies at scale.

During the latest monitoring period, Trojans saw a huge surge in their adoption and were the preferred attack method deployed against Indian enterprises, with such intrusions accounting for 27% of the total threats.

Other threats – such as infectors (24%), worms (17%), PUAs (13%), and cryptojacking (11%) – also remained popular amongst cybercriminals.

“Deploying robust, multi-layered, and tech-backed security solutions is no longer a luxury, but a critical necessity for enterprises across the country. The findings strengthen our resolve to continue leveraging state-of-the-art technologies such as artificial intelligence and proprietary tools to deliver best-in-class security to enterprises and government organisations across India,” said Katkar.

Based on Seqrite telemetry data, the report was compiled by Quick Heal Security Labs, the R&D division of Quick Heal Technologies.