Ransomware attacks spike as world distracted by AI

What, you didn't think the top gangs were busy watching agents escape their sandboxes too, did you?

Ransomware attacks jumped nearly 20 percent in July, with UK firm Comparitech counting 799 incidents, up from 668 in June.

Of those, 51 had been confirmed by victims. The tally makes July the second-busiest month of the year for ransomware, behind March, albeit just barely, when the firm recorded 805 attacks.

The most interesting data after this surging month of attacks is the targets: While news of widespread cyberattacks targeting water infrastructure in the United States may be dominating security headlines lately, those attacks aren’t ransomware, and ransomware attacks on utility companies were actually down 44 percent last month.

In addition to a decline in attacks on utilities, legal firms and government agencies also became less attractive targets, with attacks on those sectors down 31 percent and 11 percent, respectively, Comparitech said.

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