'Unprecedented' surge in cybercrime with attack every 39 seconds, says Interpol

An “unprecedented” wave of cybercrime is surging across the globe with a hack taking place every 39 seconds and costing millions to each victim, Interpol has revealed.

Speaking at the global crime-fighting body’s general assembly, the head of its Cybercrime Directorate, Neal Jetton, also said there was a 30 per cent increase in cybercrime in the second quarter of this year alone, at a cost of $18 million a day.

There was a 70 per cent increase in ransomware attacks, in which hackers paralyse an organisation’s IT systems and demand payment to unlock them. The revelation of the extent of the problem came as Interpol announced that its fight against the hackers, known as Operation Synergia II, in which the UAE took part, has led to 22,000 malicious IP addresses, or servers linked to cyber threats.

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“We are witnessing an unprecedented surge in cybercrime, with attacks increasing by 30 per cent in just the second quarter of 2024,” said Mr Jetton. “What's even more overwhelming is that a cybercrime occurs every 39 seconds. The average cost of a data breach is roughly $4.9 million and the daily cost of cybercrime is $18 million. These numbers aren't just numbers. They represent businesses, communities and lives that are affected by cybercrime.”

Mr Jetton said cybercriminals are “more organised than ever” and are offering services that allow less tech-savvy operators to get in on the act. He highlighted the ransomware-as-a-service model, which is similar to a franchise, and allows hackers to rent the tools and infrastructure needed to carry out attacks from the operator.

In turn, these affiliates return a percentage of any ransom they have been paid, often around 10 per cent. Hackers using the Qilin ransomware-as-a-service this summer attacked Synnovis, a company that provides pathology services to the UK's National Health Service in London. The hack led to operations being cancelled, including that of Dylan Kjorstad, who was due to have surgery to remove a tumour on his ribs after being diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma, a type of bone cancer.

Data provided by the Recorded Future threat intelligence company reveals that since 2021, ransomware attacks increased from 35 organisations a year to 350 in 2023, with around half taking place in the US. In 2021 there were no ransomware attacks in the UK, but that increased to three in 2022 and four in 2023. So far this year there have been seven attacks, says Recorded Future.

It has been estimated that $1.1 billion was paid to ransomware cybercriminals in 2023, with 74 per cent going to Russian-linked hackers, according to Chainalysis. “Cybercriminals are also finding new entry points through supply chains, and they're shifting their tactics and targets,” said Mr Jetton. “They are staying in systems longer to gather data for extortion.” Mr Jetton said criminals were also using artificial intelligence to bring about “improved effectiveness, speed and scope of already existing threats”.

“So the fight against cybercrime is not fair,” said Mr Jetton, a US Secret Service officer who led the Criminal Mission Centre at the National Cyber Investigative Joint Task Force in Washington DC, and is currently on secondment to Interpol. “The reality is that some law enforcement agencies are well-equipped with funds. I think the UK, the US are in pretty good shape.

“They have the tools, the training, the personnel to combat cybercrime effectively. But others face critical gaps in those areas and so, as Interpol's Cybercrime Directorate, we see it as our responsibility to bridge this gap by strengthening the capacity and capabilities of all member countries’ law enforcement policies.”

During Operation Synergia II, Interpol worked closely with its partners, Group-IB, Trend Micro, Kaspersky and Team Cymru, tapping into their expertise in tracking illegal cyber activities to identify thousands of malicious servers. This information was shared with participating law enforcement agencies, who conducted preliminary investigations, leading to a series of co-ordinated actions, including house searches, disruption of malicious cyber activities, and lawful seizures of servers and electronic devices.

More than 1,037 servers linked to malicious services were taken offline in Hong Kong, while in Macau police took 291 servers offline. Investigations in Mongolia included 21 house searches, the seizure of a server and the identification of 93 people with links to illegal cyber activities.

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Authorities in Madagascar identified 11 people with links to malicious servers and seized 11 electronic devices for further investigation. Estonian police seized more than 80GB of server data and authorities are now working with Interpol to conduct further analysis of data linked to phishing and banking malware.

The operation led to the arrest of 41 people, with 65 others still under investigation. “So this was truly, as you can see, a global law enforcement collaboration,” said Mr Jetton. “If criminals disregard borders, law enforcement should work together to remove them as well.”

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