Zscaler researchers are now predicting an increase in ransomware attacks on certain e-commerce platforms during the upcoming holiday season. The prediction is that there will be a 314% growth in HTTPS threats through 2021.

Growth of HTTPS Threats

The cybersecurity firm known as Zscaler has just released the latest State of Encrypted Attacks Report. The report highlighted the growth in HTTPS threats ever since the start of 2021, along with other attacks facing tech companies and retailers.

The report found that HTTPS threats have increased by over 314%, while attacks directly towards tech companies grew a whopping 2,300%. Retail companies have also seen a massive 800% increase when it comes to attacks. Facebook is suing a Ukrainian citizen for allegedly selling 178 million stolen user data.

Growth of Malware and Phishing Attacks

As per the report, the tech industry now accounts for a whopping 50% of every attack that they track. The total instances of malware were reportedly up by 212% in the report. It was also found that phishing attacks rose by 90%.

According to the story by ZDNet, the report tracks over 20 billion threats blocked over HTTPS and was able to analyze about 190 billion different daily transactions through its own Zero Trust Exchange that reportedly took place starting January to September 2021. Zscaler ThreatlabZ research team then went through the data to compile the said report.

Cybercriminals Moving Into Ransomware

CISO at Zscaler, Deepen Desai, noted that most enterprise IT and security teams struggle to implement SSL/TLS inspection policies. This is due to the lack of computing resources as well as privacy concerns.

The researchers found that cryptomining is becoming less prevalent as cybercriminals are now moving towards more lucrative options, just like ransomware. Zscaler reportedly noted that attacks on retailers are most likely to increase during the whole holiday season as companies are now offering digital purchase options and promoting eCommerce solutions.

Read Also: REvil Ransomware Group that Threatened Apple 'Mysteriously' Deleted Documents and Extortion Threats

eCommerce Wave of Malware and Ransomware Attacks

The company now predicts a wave of malware and ransomware attacks targeting eCommerce platforms and digital payment systems between Christmas and Black Friday. Healthcare, as well as government organizations, reportedly saw a decrease in attacks.

Overall, seven industries saw their attack rates increase from threats in both SSL and TLS traffic. Desai reportedly attributed the decrease to increased law enforcement scrutiny following the said attacks on Colonial Pipeline as well as other critical industries.

Desai stated that both healthcare and government were found to be the most frequently targeted sectors in 2020. This prompted a lot of organizations within both industries to be able to stiffen their security posture. Russian-speaking hackers were found to be attacking YouTube channels to livestream crypto scams.

Related Article: Cybercriminal Payback | BlackMatter Ransomware Criminals Lost Potential Millions in Payments After Code Mistake Found by Researchers

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Urian B.