2024 Data Breach Investigations Report: Most breaches involve a non-malicious human element
HelpNet Security, Thursday, May 2nd, 2024
The exploitation of vulnerabilities as an initial point of entry almost tripled from the previous year, accounting for 14% of all breaches, according to Verizon's 2024 Data Breach Investigations Report, which analyzed a record-high 30,458 security incidents and 10,626 confirmed breaches in 2023.
This spike was driven primarily by the increasing frequency of attacks targeting vulnerabilities on unpatched systems and devices (zero-day vulnerabilities) by ransomware actors. The MOVEit software breach was one of the largest drivers of these cyberattacks, first in the education sector and later spreading to finance and insurance industries.
'The exploitation of zero-day vulnerabilities by ransomware actors remains a persistent threat to safeguarding enterprises,' said Chris Novak, Sr. Director of Cybersecurity Consulting, Verizon Business.