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Cybersecurity Statistics

Cybersecurity statistics

Phishing was the most common way of delivering ransomware, accounting for 45% of incidents. This is a slight fall compared to 2021, when phishing was used in 48% of ransomware attacks. The next most common methods were remote desktop protocol (RDP) compromises (32%) and exploiting software vulnerabilities (19%).

PublisherIllumio & Ponemon Institute
ReportThe Global Cost of Ransomware Study
Published1 January 2025

Published by Illumio & Ponemon Institute in The Global Cost of Ransomware Study , 1 January 2025. The figure is taken from the report as published; the full methodology is in the source.

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Related statistics

Motivations for paying a ransom included: Not wanting data leaked (47%), inability to afford downtime (47%), having cyber insurance (41%), and all of the above (40%).
Illumio & Ponemon Institute, 01/01/2025
58% of organisations hit by ransomware in 2024 were forced to shut down operations to recover. This is an increase from 45% in 2021.
Illumio & Ponemon Institute, 01/01/2025
Data exfiltration was the most common tactic used by ransomware groups to exert pressure (47%), followed by DDoS attacks (45%), data encryption (43%), and communicating with stakeholders/customers (34%).
Illumio & Ponemon Institute, 01/01/2025
Only 28% of respondents said their organisations informed law enforcement when they were hit by ransomware.
Illumio & Ponemon Institute, 01/01/2025
The proportion of respondents reporting a significant revenue loss as a result of a ransomware attack nearly doubled from 22% in 2021 to 40% in 2024.
Illumio & Ponemon Institute, 01/01/2025
Containment and remediation of a ransomware attack in 2024 took an average of 132 hours and involved an average of 17.5 staff and third parties, resulting in an average cost of $146,685.
Illumio & Ponemon Institute, 01/01/2025

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