Highlights From the Verizon 2022 Data Breach Investigations Report

This year, ransomware attacks have seen a nearly 13 percent increase. That’s as big a jump as the last five years combined.

In these attacks, cybercriminals have usually taken one of the following routes to gain access to the data in your computer system: Credentials, Phishing, Exploiting vulnerabilities and Botnets.

That’s according to the Verizon 2022 Data Breach Investigations Report.

A major takeaway from this year’s Verizon report is the identification of those four common routes that cybercriminals take to launch their attacks. No system is safe without a plan to block these routes, the report says.

Read the Verizon 2022 Data Breach Investigations Report here. Below are some highlights.

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Verizon 2022 Data Breach Investigations Report
Here are some key takeaways, all data from the report itself:

• Supply chain woes caused big cyber trouble. “Supply chain was responsible for 62 percent of System Intrusion incidents this year,” according to the report.
• Mistakes – especially in cloud setup – happen. “Error continues to be a dominant trend and is responsible for 13 percent of breaches. This finding is heavily influenced by misconfigured cloud storage. While this is the second year in a row that we have seen a slight leveling out for this pattern, the fallibility of employees should not be discounted.”
• Human error is the main culprit. “This year 82 percent of breaches involved the human element. Whether it is the Use of stolen credentials, Phishing, Misuse, or simply an Error, people continue to play a very large role in incidents and breaches alike.” 

Verizon Report: Action Categories

Hacking: attempts to intentionally access or harm information assets without (or exceeding) authorization by circumventing or thwarting logical security mechanisms. 

Malware: any malicious software, script, or code run on a device that alters its state or function without the owner’s informed consent. 

Error: anything done (or left undone) incorrectly or inadvertently 

Social: employ deception, manipulation, intimidation, etc., to exploit the human element, or users, of information assets.

Misuse: use of entrusted organizational resources or privileges for any purpose or manner contrary to that which was intended. 

Physical: deliberate threats that involve proximity, possession, or force. 

Environmental: not only includes natural events such as earthquakes and floods, but also hazards associated with the immediate environment or infrastructure in which assets are located

Source: 2022-data-breach-investigations-report-dbir.pdf (verizon.com)

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