83% of Organizations in India Report Increased Attacks During the Pandemic: Sophos Research
By MYBRANDBOOK
Sophos, a global leader in next-generation cybersecurity, today announced the findings of its global survey, “Phishing Insights 2021,” which reveals that phishing attacks targeting organizations ramped up considerably during the pandemic, as millions of employees working from home became a prime target for cybercriminals. The majority (83%) of IT teams in India said the number of phishing emails targeting their employees increased during 2020.
“Phishing has been around for over 25 years and remains an effective cyberattack technique. One of the reasons for its success is its ability to continuously evolve and diversify, tailoring attacks to topical issues or concerns, such as the pandemic, and playing on human emotions and trust,” said Chester Wisniewski, principal research scientist at Sophos. “It can be tempting for organizations to see phishing attacks as a relatively low-level threat, but that underestimates their power. Phishing is often the first step in a complex, multi-stage attack. According to Sophos Rapid Response, attackers frequently use phishing emails to trick users into installing malware or sharing credentials that provide access to the corporate network.”
The findings also reveal that there is a lack of common understanding about the definition of phishing. For instance, 67% of IT teams in India associate phishing with emails that falsely claim to be from a legitimate organization, and which are usually combined with a threat or request for information. Sixty-one percent consider Business Email Compromise (BEC) attacks to be phishing, and half of the respondents (50%) think threadjacking – when attackers insert themselves into a legitimate email thread as part of an attack – is phishing.
The good news is that most organizations in India (98%) have implemented cybersecurity awareness programs to combat phishing. Respondents said they use computer-based training programs (67%), human-led training programs (60%), and phishing simulations (51%).
“The ideal would be to prevent phishing emails from ever reaching their intended recipient," said Wisniewski. “Effective email security solutions can go a long way towards achieving this, but this should be complemented by alert and primed employees who are able to spot and report suspicious messages before they get any further.”
The survey also showed that
· Four-fifths of Indian organizations assess the impact of their awareness program through the number of phishing-related tickets raised with IT, followed by the level of reporting of phishing emails by users (77%) and click rates on phishing emails (60%)
· All the organizations surveyed (100%) in Delhi, Hyderabad, and Kolkata say they have cybersecurity awareness program in place. This was followed by Chennai where 97% have such programs , and then Bengaluru and Mumbai at 96% each
BREAKING NEWS
TECHNO TRENDS
Legal Battle Over IT Act Intensifies Amid Musk’s India Plans
The outcome of the legal dispute between X Corp and the Indian government c...
Wipro inks 10-year deal with Phoenix Group's ReAssure UK worth
The agreement, executed through Wipro and its 100% subsidiary,...
Centre announces that DPDP Rules nearing Finalisation by April
The government seeks to refine the rules for robust data protection, ensuri...
Home Ministry cracks down on PoS agents in digital arrest scam
Digital arrest scams are a growing cybercrime where victims are coerced or ...
E-Magazine
TECHNOTAINMENT
Hrithik Roshan to endorse RuPay as Brand Ambassador
RuPay is reportedly planning to feature Bollywood superstar Hrithik Rosha
India Today Group launches – AI Pop Stars
Staying true to our industry leadership position in using cutting-edge tech
MOVERS & SHAKERS
TelioLabs ropes in Phaniraj V A as the Group CEO
TelioLabs has announced the onboarding of Phaniraj V A as its new Group CE
Wipro Appoints Amit Kumar as Managing Partner and Global Head
Wipro Limited (NYSE: WIT, BSE: 507685, NSE: WIPRO), a leading technology s
OPEN YOUR EYES
INTERVIEWS
Delivering Critical Business Communication Solutions to Enterp
Arya Omnitalk and Syntel’s comprehensive suite of solutions and more than
AMD Pensando driving innovation in the DPU architecture space
AMD Pensando stands out in the DPU (Data Processing Unit) market with its u
HOT PICK
MSI Announces the availability of RTX 50 series of laptops in
MSI, the innovative computing manufacturer in gaming, creator
Nothing Phone (3a) goes on sale today, starting at Rs 19,999
The phone was launched on March 4, featuring a 50MP main, ultra-wide, and t
MAKE IN INDIA BRANDS
MICROTEK INTERNATIONAL PVT. LTD.
POLYCAB INDIA PVT. LTD
BPE INDIA PVT. LTD.
TP-LINK INDIA PVT. LTD.
EMINENT CIO'S OF INDIA
ICONS OF INDIA
Icons Of India : Daisy Chittilapilly
Daisy Chittilapilly is the President of Cisco’s India and SAARC regi...
ICONS OF INDIA : SOM SATSANGI
With more than three decades in the IT Sector, Som is responsible for ...
Icons Of India : CP Gurnani
Former Managing Director and CEO of the well-known IT service company ...
PARTNER SPEAKERS
PSU
CSC - Common Service Centres
CSC initiative in India is a strategic cornerstone of the Digital Indi...
IFFCO - Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative
IFFCO operates as a cooperative society owned and controlled by its fa...
IOCL - Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.
IOCL is India’s largest oil refining and marketing company ...
VIDEOS
Top 25 Brands
Global Indian industry
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - Satya Nadella, Chairman & CEO- Microsoft
Satya Nadella, the Chairman and CEO of Microsoft, recently emphasized ...
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - Sanjay Mehrotra, CEO- Micron Technology
Sanjay Mehrotra, the President and CEO of Micron Technology, is at the...
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - Shantanu Narayen, CEO- Adobe Systems Incorporated
Shantanu Narayen, CEO of Adobe Systems Incorporated, is renowned for h...
ITFORUM 2025
CMO of the Year
WOMEN LEADERSHIP
IMAGE GALLERY
TRENDS IN TECHNOLOGY
MORE VIDEOS
ADVERTISEMENTS
TECHNOLOGY DISRUPTION
UNICORNS REVOLUTIONISING
of images belongs to the respective copyright holders
