What This Report Covers
This edition closes 2023. As in earlier quarters, the USA, Canada and the UK were the most targeted countries, with attack rates rising in each compared with recent periods.
Key Findings of the Ransomware Trends Report Q4 2023
The report analyses over 1,313 ransomware incidents in the fourth quarter of 2023 from the 50 most active groups, with quarter-by-quarter comparisons for the whole of 2023.
- The United States took 53.9% of attacks in Q4 2023, more than half of the total, with Canada and the United Kingdom next.
- LockBit (19.5%) and Play (11.3%) were the most active groups in Q4, followed by ALPHV/Blackcat (7.5%), Toufan (6%) and 8Base (5.7%).
- Business, professional and legal services made up 25.9% of events, manufacturing 16.8% and retail 12.1%.
- For the whole of 2023, LockBit led with 18.9% of attacks and Cl0p followed with 10.3%.
- November had the highest increase, with 400 attacks, mostly by LockBit and Play.
- The report covers the US Department of Justice action against the ALPHV/BlackCat group, which gave its victims a free decryption tool.
The full PDF adds profiles of Cactus, Rhysida, Qilin, Ransomhouse and INC, the quarter's important ransomware news, the most used CVEs and a section on tactics, techniques and procedures.
The statistics put business, professional and legal services at 25.9% of events and manufacturing at 16.8%. LockBit, Play and BlackCat are named as the most prolific groups, possibly because of more sophisticated tactics and a broader range of targets. November had the highest increase, with 400 attacks.
The report is a year-end view of the ransomware picture for 2023. The LockBit profile gives background on the most active group.
It completes the four-quarter view of 2023 on the site, so readers can compare the monthly peaks and sector shares across the full year and see which groups stayed prominent.
Security professionals often struggle to keep up with evolving ransomware trends due to the constant barrage of information. We aim to help you filter this overload, present the 2023 Ransomware Trends in an understandable format, and convert this information into meaningful insights.
Exploring Ransomware Trends in Q4 of 2023: Our Comprehensive Analysis
Q4 2023 Ransomware Trends: Key Insights
- Our analysts have identified staggering ransomware incidents across 27 industry sub-sectors with devastating consequences.
- According to the data collected by our team, the USA, UK, and Canada became the most targeted countries by ransomware attacks during Q4 / 2023.
- Comparing the number of ransomware attacks on countries in recent periods, there has been an increased rate of attacks in several countries, such as the USA, Canada, and the UK.
- The statistical distribution of these events shows that 25.9% of them were related to business, professional, and legal services, while 16.8% of the events were in the manufacturing sector.
- LockBit, Play, and Blackcat emerged as the most prolific attack groups, possibly due to more sophisticated tactics and a broader range of targeted industries.
- The highest increase was in November, with 400 attacks.