Average ransom demand for ransomware reaches $5.2 million

An analysis by Comparitch indicates that the average extortion per ransomware attack exceeded the $5.2 million mark (approximately R$29.6 million at current exchange rates) at the beginning of the third quarter of 2024.

The largest of the attacks, carried out between January and June this year, involved Indian pharmaceutical company RCC Laboratories and demanded a payout of US$100 million.

Rounding out the top three are British pathology provider Synnovis, which was blackmailed for $50 million, and Canadian retailer London Drugs, which was forced to pay $25 million.

LockBit is the largest ransomware group to date

Looking at the catalogs, there have been around 420 ransomware attacks so far in 2024. But underreporting is notorious. Yet the research shows that despite the increase in value, the number of attacks has decreased over the same period: in 2023, there were 704 attacks.

The main group involved in such attacks was LockBit, which grew primarily through its RaaS service, i.e. ransomware as a service. Cybercriminals were able to “rent” the group’s malicious package to act on their own.

The analysis also shows that other groups also make up the TOP 5, followed by Medusa, BlackBasta, Akira, and 8Base.

What is ransomware?

If you’ve come this far and don’t know what ransomware is, let us explain: Ransomware is like a hijacker of the digital world. The virus enters your computer or smartphone, encrypts all the files (hijacks them) and demands a payment for its release.

Besides the obvious financial loss issue, ransomware operators also extort users by leaking sensitive data captured by the virus.