The rate of hacker attacks on Russian companies increased by 21%

The average duration of a cyberattack on Russian companies in 2024 will be 51 minutes, which is 21% less than in 2023, according to data from the company Informzaschita (a system integrator in the field of information security), which were reviewed by Izvestia on February 21. Experts attribute this negative trend to the spread of stylers, the development of service hacking platforms and the use of artificial intelligence by attackers.

The duration of an attack was measured from the moment attackers gain initial access to the beginning of horizontal movement in the victim's information system, when hackers' actions become more difficult to track and localize.

The number of styler attacks increased by 54% in 2024. As explained by experts, such malware allows quick access by stealing sensitive data from a company employee's device. This reduces the time it takes to gain initial access and gain a foothold in the victim's information infrastructure.

The development of service-based hacking platforms also accelerates attacks, according to the company. Attackers team up to increase the likelihood of success and assign responsibilities to each stage of the attack. By distributing the workload, the overall attack time is reduced.

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The integrator's experts also pointed to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) by hackers for their own purposes. According to them, firstly, the technology allows fraudsters to conduct an automatic pentest of the victim's information infrastructure in order to fix vulnerabilities that can be used in the future. Secondly, attackers, especially inexperienced ones, use AI as a consultant at each stage of an attack, thus reducing its overall duration.

Experts emphasized that reducing the duration of an attack is a big challenge for information security professionals. When working under conditions of system penetration, the count is minutes, so reducing the time leads to an increased chance of hackers that the defense team will not have time to take action in time and prevent the incident.

Earlier, on January 13, it was reported that 65% of analyzed companies in Russia have a low level of security. Attacks on them can cause critical damage, lead to the stoppage of key business processes and financial losses. This is stated in the results of a study by the information security company Bastion.