58% of Italian organizations hit by ransomware

58% of Italian organizations have been hit by a ransomware attack in the past three years and 57% have seen at least one other company within their supply chain become a victim of cybercriminals.

The figure emerges from the latest research by security company Trend Micro.

While another analysis by the cybersecurity company NordLocker showed that Italy ranks sixth in the world for ransomware attacks, surpassed only by the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France and Germany.

Trend Micro's report revealed that 80% of Italian IT executives believe their partners and customers make their organization a more attractive ransomware target.

The challenge is particularly delicate - adds the analysis - considering that SMEs, potentially less secure, represent 56% of the supply chain of many organizations.

Only 51% of companies share data on ransomware attacks with their vendors, and 37% say they do not inform partners about threats.

"Detection rates - reports Trend Micro - are worryingly low for activities such as: ransomware (54%), data exfiltration (44%), initial access (41%)" The supply chain, the supply chain,

it can also be used by cybercriminals to leverage targets.

Among organizations that have experienced a ransomware attack in the past three years, 60% said attackers contacted customers or partners about the breach to force payment.

"Ransomware is a type of cyber attack that forces companies to stop operations, taking possession of the most important and sensitive files and demanding a ransom for data recovery - says Tomas Smalakys, technical director of NordLocker - This type is extremely effective , as cases have grown exponentially in recent years, while cybersecurity awareness hasn't been able to keep up. "