This decline amounted to 311 million, the lowest level in three years, according to the American company “Chain Analysis”.
Reasons for declining ransom payments:
Increased awareness Investing in protection systems Increased arrests Non-payment orders are widespread
The company attributed this to the improvement in awareness of cybersecurity risks and the way to deal with them, the investment of companies in security and protection systems, and the increase in arrests and instructions for non-payment, among other factors.
Covoir, a company that specializes in negotiating with pirates, said its clients have become more reluctant to pay pirates, who sometimes demand millions of dollars.
Thus, only 41 percent of them agreed to pay a ransom in 2022, compared to 70 percent in 2020.
Despite the decline in hacker revenue, the number of unique ransomware used in attacks increased significantly in 2022.
Research by cybersecurity firm Fortinet found that more than 10,000 unique types of malware were active in the first half of 2022.
Ransomware breaches occur when a malicious program gains access to an electronic device, encrypts either the entire operating system or specific files, and demands a ransom from the victim for their release.
To talk about the subject, Roland Abi Najm, a consultant in security, information technology and digital transformation, told Sky News Arabia:
Remote work in the time of Corona has increased piracy. Cybersecurity risks are high, and hackers demand ransoms with cryptocurrency. Voice forgery is a dangerous scam method to be wary of. To avoid phishing, users should check any email or message they receive.
