Over 740,000 cases of cyber crime were reported to the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) in India within the first four months of 2024 alone. The number of cyber crimes in the country saw a massive spike between 2019 and 2020 and have been on the rise ever since. Roughly 85 percent of the reports in 2024 were related to online financial fraud.

As of September 2024, almost 30 percent of cyber incidents detected in the past 12 months were hacking incidents. A further 28.7 percent were incidents of misuse, and 15.2 percent of detections revealed malware attacks.

The largest reported data leakage as of January 2025 was the Cam4 data breach in March 2020, which exposed more than 10 billion data records. The second-largest data breach in history so far, the Yahoo data breach, occurred in 2013. The company initially reported about one billion exposed data records, but after an investigation, the company updated the number, revealing that three billion accounts were affected. The National Public Data Breach was announced in August 2024. The incident became public when personally identifiable information of individuals became available for sale on the dark web. Overall, the security professionals estimate the leakage of nearly three billion personal records. The next significant data leakage was the March 2018 security breach of India's national ID database, Aadhaar, with over 1.1 billion records exposed. This included biometric information such as identification numbers and fingerprint scans, which could be used to open bank accounts and receive financial aid, among other government services.

Cybercrime - the dark side of digitalization As the world continues its journey into the digital age, corporations and governments across the globe have been increasing their reliance on technology to collect, analyze and store personal data. This, in turn, has led to a rise in the number of cyber crimes, ranging from minor breaches to global-scale attacks impacting billions of users – such as in the case of Yahoo. Within the U.S. alone, 1802 cases of data compromise were reported in 2022. This was a marked increase from the 447 cases reported a decade prior. The high price of data protection As of 2022, the average cost of a single data breach across all industries worldwide stood at around 4.35 million U.S. dollars. This was found to be most costly in the healthcare sector, with each leak reported to have cost the affected party a hefty 10.1 million U.S. dollars. The financial segment followed closely behind. Here, each breach resulted in a loss of approximately 6 million U.S. dollars - 1.5 million more than the global average.

Cyber attacks on businesses are becoming more frequent, targeted, and complex. The effects of a cyber attack go well beyond the direct financial consequences. In 2024, 47 percent of respondents indicated greater difficulty in attracting new customers as the main consequence of cyber attacks.

The global indicator 'Estimated Cost of Cybercrime' in the cybersecurity market was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total *** trillion U.S. dollars (+***** percent). After the eleventh consecutive increasing year, the indicator is estimated to reach ***** trillion U.S. dollars and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the indicator 'Estimated Cost of Cybercrime' of the cybersecurity market was continuously increasing over the past years. Ransomware and manufacturing industry Cyberattacks remain a significant challenge for organizations worldwide, sectors such as manufacturing, finance, and insurance were the most affected by these attacks. Among the various types of cyber threats, ransomware was the most frequently detected, accounting for around ** percent of all incidents. The manufacturing industry, in particular, faced the highest number of ransomware attacks, making it the most targeted sector globally. Cybersecurity awareness and investments Organizations worldwide became increasingly aware of the dangers posed by cyberattacks, approximately ** percent of internet users became familiar terms such as with "ransomware." In response to these threats, companies invested more in cybersecurity. In 2024, the average annual increase in IT security budgets was expected to reach *** percent. In fact, for companies worldwide, enhancing the cyber resilience of their cybersecurity teams was the top spending priority in 2023.

As of January 2024, around 58 percent of large companies in the United Kingdom (UK) had experienced cybercrime within the past year. Medium businesses ranked second, with 45 percent of companies experiencing cybercrime. Overall, about 22 percent of UK businesses stated having experienced any form of cybercrime in the preceding year.

In 2024, it was found that around 46 percent of companies in Germany were affected by the theft of digital data. 30 percent of companies said that they were probably impacted by the theft of sensitive documents.

As of 2024, the average cost of a data breach in the United States amounted to 9.36 million U.S. dollars, down from 9.48 million U.S. dollars in the previous year. The global average cost per data breach was 4.88 million U.S. dollars in 2024. Cost of a data breach in different countries worldwide Data breaches impose a big threat for organizations globally. The monetary damage caused by data breaches has increased in many markets in the past decade. In 2023, Canada followed the U.S. by data breach costs, with an average of 5.13 million U.S. dollars. Since 2019, the average monetary damage caused by loss of sensitive information in Canada has increased notably. In the United Kingdom, the average cost of a data breach in 2024 amounted to around 4.53 million U.S. dollars, while in Germany it stood at 5.31 million U.S. dollars. The cost of data breach by industry and segment Data breach costs vary depending on the industry and segment. For the fourth consecutive year, the global healthcare sector registered the highest costs of data breach, which in 2024 amounted to about nine million U.S. dollars. Financial institutions ranked second, with an average cost of six million U.S. dollars for a data breach. Detection and escalation was the costliest segment in data breaches worldwide, with 1.63 U.S. dollars on average. The cost for lost business ranked second, while response following a breach came across as the third-costliest segment.

In 2024, numerous data breach incidents were disclosed, causing uncertainty among customers. Some of the incidents have refused to disclose the exact number of individuals impacted, so the impact in these cases is only estimated. The largest data breach is believed to have impacted every American, with around three billion records being breached. A UK-based pathology lab, Synnovis, saw a ransomware attack in July 2024, which impacted approximately 300 million patients.

During the first half of 2024, around 88 percent of cyberattacks carried out in Italy had cybercrime as a purpose. Cyber espionage was another motivation, representing the main reason behind roughly four percent of attacks. By contrast, information warfare only accounted for two percent of the cyberattacks in the country in the last examined period. Data breaches in Italy In 2023, over half of the Italian digital population was alerted that their personal data had been breached, and 77.5 percent of the alerted users had the misfortune of being affected by data compromise on the dark web. Despite a decrease in the number of data sets affected in data breaches between 2020 and 2023, Italy recorded almost one million exposed data sets at the beginning of 2023.Meanwhile, the average cost of data breaches for both Italian companies and targeted users kept growing, reaching 4.73 million U.S. dollars in 2024, up from the 3.86 million U.S. dollars recorded in the previous year. The Italian privacy landscape: GDPR effects As a state member of the European Union, Italy is covered by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Since 2018, the GDPR has regulated online data privacy and has the responsibility to represent consumers’ interests within the digital and tech landscape of the Union. As of 2023, approximately 265 fines were issued in Italy due to violations of the GDPR – making Italy the second country in Europe with the highest number of violations dispensed to tech companies. The highest GDPR fine ever issued in Italy was at the expense of Telecom Italia (TIM), one of the largest Italian telecommunications companies. TIM was fined approximately 27.8 million euros in January 2020. GDPR is enforced and helped by the country's Garante della Privacy, the national institution overseeing Italian users’ online rights, cybersecurity, and digital privacy.

Cybersecurity awareness varies significantly across European countries, with a substantial portion of the population unsure about their vulnerability to cybercrime. A 2024 study reveals that while many Europeans are uncertain about being targets for cybercriminals, there are notable differences in perception and experience among nations. This uncertainty highlights the need for increased education and awareness regarding digital threats in an increasingly connected world. Varying experiences with cyber incidents The perception of cybercrime risk correlates with actual experiences of cyber incidents. Spain, where 27.5 percent of respondents believe they are targets for cybercriminals, also reported the highest rate of cyber incidents in the past 12 months at nearly 28 percent. In contrast, Italy, where only 16.4 percent of respondents believed they were targets, experienced the lowest rate of cyber incidents at around 16 percent. Fraud attempts emerged as the most common type of cybersecurity incident, particularly in Spain, where over half of those who suffered cyberattacks reported such attempts. Mobile security adoption and concerns The adoption of mobile security solutions varies across European countries, with Germany leading at over 64 percent of respondents using such solutions on their phones. The United Kingdom lags, with just under 50 percent of respondents employing mobile security measures. Android users are more likely to use security solutions, with 77 percent of Spanish respondents who use mobile security doing so on Android devices. These findings underscore the growing importance of mobile security in the face of evolving cyber threats. Additionally, broader internet safety concerns persist, with 68 percent of UK users expressing worry about distinguishing between real and fake content online.

In 2024, companies in Germany lost a total of ***** billion euros from cybercrime. Companies also spent almost **** billion euros on legal disputes. The least amount of money was lost due to fraud attempts.

Between the first quarter of 2023 and the third quarter of 2024, the number of records exposed in data breaches in the United States decreased significantly. In the most recent measured period, over 93.7 million records were reported as leaked, down from around 116 million in the previous quarter.

The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) took down around 60,000 pieces of online content that perpetrated cyber crime in India between March and September 2024. Other actions taken by the I4C, set up by the Ministry of Home Affairs, included blocking mobile phone numbers, IMEIs, and applications linked to cyber crimes.

As of January 2024, around nine in ten businesses in the United Kingdom (UK) stated having experienced a phishing attack in the past year. A further 10 percent said they had experienced hacking incidents. Additionally, around two percent reported experiencing viruses, spyware, or malware attacks.

As of February 2024, the United States ranked first by the average cost of a data breach, 9.36 million U.S. dollars. The average cost of data breaches in the Middle East is 8.75 million U.S. dollars. Benelux followed in the ranking, with 5.9 million U.S. dollars. In the measured period, the global average data breach cost was 4.88 million U.S. dollars. Phishing scams in the U.S. Breached data often ends up in the hands of threat actors who use it for malicious purposes, including online scams. Phishing continues to be a major threat in North America, particularly on smartphones. In the second quarter of 2023, the region recorded the highest number of phishing and malicious attack attempts globally. The United States was particularly affected, with 45 percent of U.S. citizens reporting being targeted by scam texts, e-mails, and calls on a daily basis. Additionally, phishing and spoofing were the most common types of cybercrime, impacting 298 thousand individuals in 2023. These attacks led to financial losses, with U.S. victims reporting nearly 20 billion U.S. dollars in damages throughout the year. U.S. users and data privacy Despite only 20 percent of internet users in the United States being highly knowledgeable about data privacy and cybersecurity, a significant portion of users demonstrated caution and awareness in protecting their information. In fact, over half of surveyed U.S. users reported being somewhat confident in knowing the right steps to take in the event of a cyberattack. Furthermore, 43 percent of U.S. users actively decline cookies on websites, reflecting their increasing concern for data protection. Many respondents also take additional steps to safeguard their digital privacy, such as limiting or avoiding clicking on ads as well as not answering phone calls due to cybersecurity risks.

Manufacturing remains among the most targeted industries by cyberattacks. Among the most significant attacks in this sector, in terms of monetary losses, was the 2023 Clorox attack, where the company lost around 356 million U.S. dollars due to decline in sales, based on lower production volumes due to the attack. Another big hack involved a business partner of semiconductor giant Applied Materials, which cost the company 250 million U.S. dollars.

In 2024, the number of data compromises in the United States stood at 3,158 cases. Meanwhile, over 1.35 billion individuals were affected in the same year by data compromises, including data breaches, leakage, and exposure. While these are three different events, they have one thing in common. As a result of all three incidents, the sensitive data is accessed by an unauthorized threat actor. Industries most vulnerable to data breaches Some industry sectors usually see more significant cases of private data violations than others. This is determined by the type and volume of the personal information organizations of these sectors store. In 2024 the financial services, healthcare, and professional services were the three industry sectors that recorded most data breaches. Overall, the number of healthcare data breaches in some industry sectors in the United States has gradually increased within the past few years. However, some sectors saw decrease. Largest data exposures worldwide In 2020, an adult streaming website, CAM4, experienced a leakage of nearly 11 billion records. This, by far, is the most extensive reported data leakage. This case, though, is unique because cyber security researchers found the vulnerability before the cyber criminals. The second-largest data breach is the Yahoo data breach, dating back to 2013. The company first reported about one billion exposed records, then later, in 2017, came up with an updated number of leaked records, which was three billion. In March 2018, the third biggest data breach happened, involving India’s national identification database Aadhaar. As a result of this incident, over 1.1 billion records were exposed.

In 2024, the number of crimes that were committed using the internet, digital devices, or other telecommunication technologies increased in Russia. The number of technology crimes was the highest over the observed period.

In 2024, the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism in Romania closed 1,994 cybercrime cases. However, the number of pending cases has increased by 13.2 percent since 2023.       Cybercrime in Romania              Cybercrime poses a significant challenge in Romania, with distinct patterns observed across regions and varying attack methods. The Bucharest-Ilfov region stands out, as 19.2 percent of respondents reported using software programs to limit online activity tracking in 2023, indicating a notable concern for digital privacy. In contrast, the North-West region had a lower adoption rate at 8.9 percent. Regarding malware threats, Trojan.AgentACBD led the charts in 2023, registering 46,720 attack alerts, closely followed by Trojan.IoT.Mirai and InfoStealer.AGENTTESLA. Phishing attacks fluctuated, peaking at 39,615 incidents in April 2023 but dropping to 1,385 in December 2023. This dynamic landscape underscores the need for robust cybersecurity measures nationwide.       Online Video Games            The digital landscape is evolving, marked by notable shifts in women's internet usage. While the overall share of internet users has risen for both genders, the gender gap has significantly narrowed. In 2024, female internet users lagged behind males by only 0.9 percent, a substantial improvement from the 2.5 percent gap in 2019. Social media usage remained the most popular online activity for women. However, a noteworthy trend is women's substantial use of the internet to gather health-related information, showcasing a diversified gender digital presence.