A new report from information security firm Trend Micro indicates that the number of cyberattacks will rise by 55% in 2022 compared to the previous year.
The company also said its products prevented a 242 percent increase in malicious files in 2022, with threat actors indiscriminately targeting consumers and organizations.
Trend Micro says threat actors typically first gain access to victims through remote services before expanding their presence by collecting credentials.
The company added that it has been very careful about maintaining its presence on vulnerable internet-connected devices, as it has seen an 86 percent increase in malware intended to ensure continuity.
The number of zero-day alerts reached record levels for the third year in a row, reaching 1,706 by 2022, according to the company.
Trend Micro attributes this to the "rapid proliferation of enterprise attacks" and increased investment in automated scanning tools that can detect more vulnerabilities.
In fact, twice as many critical vulnerabilities will be discovered in 2022 than in 2021.
Two of the three biggest vulnerabilities reported in 2022 are related to the Log4j vulnerability, which still looks like a major problem years after it was discovered.
Failed patches that "conflate" vulnerabilities with warnings are on the rise, forcing organizations to spend more time and money resolving potential problems. As a result, companies are exposed to additional and unnecessary risks.
To counter the increasing volatility of cybercrime, Trend Micro recommends that organizations regularly scan assets to determine their criticality, ensure that cloud infrastructure security is properly configured, and prioritize updates early to reduce the risk of exploit. .
For John Clay, Vice President of Threat Intelligence at Trend Micro, 2022 is the year when "threat actors" start doing whatever it takes to "maximize their bottom line."
"The sudden increase in backdoor detections is particularly worrying because they gain access to networks," Clay said. To effectively manage risk amid rapidly escalating attacks, advanced security teams need a lighter, platform-driven approach.