Cyber extortion is on the rise, but the extent of the problem is unclear because most companies pay the ransom demand to minimise the potential impact to their services, and never publicly announce that they have been targeted. The ransomware attack was launched by a group calling itself CyberCaliphate. US software security company, Intel Security, reported that the use of ransomware increased by 58% in Q2 of 2015. International software security group, Kaspersky Lab, has argued that ransomware attacks may outpace banking Trojans as a way for cyber-criminals to make money.
Cyber extortion is on the rise, but the extent of the problem is unclear because most companies pay the ransom demand to minimise the potential impact to their services, and never publicly announce that they have been targeted. Speaking about the problem, Greg Sim, chief executive of security firm, Glasswall Solutions, said: “Cyber-criminals are becoming increasingly ambitious, resulting in an alarming increase in the number of councils, governments and national infrastructure organisations being targeted.” US software security company, Intel Security, reported that the use of ransomware increased by 58% in Q2 of 2015. International software security group, Kaspersky Lab, has argued that ransomware attacks may outpace banking Trojans as a way for cyber-criminals to make money.