According to a new study by Check Point Research, the healthcare sector in India recorded the highest number of cyberattacks, followed by education, research, and government. The study revealed that the healthcare sector was subjected to 1,866 attacks per week. The study also revealed that global cyberattacks surged by 38% in 2022 in comparison to 2021.

The research team stated that the numbers were driven up by smaller, more agile hackers and ransomware gangs who were trying to exploit collaboration tools used in work-from-home environments. They revealed that globally, the education and research sector was the most attacked industry and reported a surge of 43 percent in 2022.

According to the survey, hospitals are popular targets for hackers because they are seen to be under-resourced in terms of cyber security, with smaller hospitals being the most at risk. Furthermore, it is profitable for hackers to retrieve medical record numbers, social security numbers, and health insurance information by directly threatening individuals with ransomware gangs and demanding money in exchange for the release of their medical records.

Additionally, as AI technology becomes more widely accessible to individuals, cyberattacks are anticipated to rise as hackers are able to produce dangerous code and emails at a quicker, more automated pace.