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Cybersecurity Threat Landscape: Statistics on Ransomware and SQL Injection Attacks

SQL Injections attacks and vulnerabilities Statistics

SQL Injection Attacks: Reminding the Persistent Threat

SQL injection attacks remain a major threat to global cybersecurity. Despite existence of defensive technologies (WAF protection and analysis of vulnerabilities) since around 20 years, the number of SQL Injection (SQLi) attacks grows significantly. These attacks exploit vulnerabilities in web applications and databases, leading to significant data breaches and financial losses.

The year 2023 has seen a continuation of this trend, highlighting the urgent need for more robust security measures.

SQL injection are one of the top threats (owasp.org)

SQL injections are a major threat to businesses. SQLi are involved in a large number of Ransomware. Year 2023 has been quite eventful for ransomware attacks. Here are some ransomware attack statistics to consider :

  • Ransomware attacks went up more than 95% over 2022. (DarkReading)
  • As of 2023, over 72% of businesses worldwide were affected by ransomware attacks. (Statista)
  • The number of ransomware victims in 2023 has already surpassed what was observed for 2021 and 2022. (DarkReading)
  • The media, leisure, and entertainment industry had the highest number of vulnerabilities exploited in ransomware attacks. (Statista)
  • 36% of the organizations suffered ransomware attacks because of exploited vulnerabilities in 2023. Credential compromise was the second-most common cause of successful ransomware attacks, while malicious e-mail ranked third. (Statista)
  • The average cost of ransomware attack 2023 sits at US$ 1.85 million. (GetAstra)
  • The CLOP ransomware group has played a major role in the spike of 2023 ransomware activity. (DarkReading)
  • The global average cost of a data breach in 2023 was US$ 4.45 million – a 15% increase over 3 years. (IBM).
  • 51% of organizations are planning to increase security investments as a result of a breach – including incident response planning and testing, employee training, and threat detection and response tools. (IBM)
  • The average savings for organizations that use security Al and automation extensively is US$ 1.76 million compared to organization that don’t (IBM)

According to a 2022 study, companies worldwide take on average between 290 and 180 days to patch cyber vulnerabilities. In some cases, these vulnerabilities represent a critical threat to the company. 

  • On average, organizations fixed cyber vulnerabilities that were considered of high severity within 146 days. Low-severity vulnerabilities required almost 10 months and were the slowest to get fixed.

The Prevalence and Impact of SQLi Attacks

Widespread Vulnerability:

  • An alarming 42% of attacks on public-facing systems were SQL injection-based, underscoring the criticality of these threats. Internal systems, though less frequently targeted (12%), are not immune, revealing a broad attack surface for malicious actors (Source: OWASP).
  • 21% of (large) organizations are still vulnerable to SQL threats. (Source OWASP), And organizations are still in danger due to outdated systems and a lack of adequate security means.  

Some Historical Breaches of Note:

  • The largest SQL injection attack in history compromised over 1 billion user IDs and passwords, a stark reminder of the potential scale of SQLi exploits.
  • Additionally, a single attack extracted 130 million card details, and
  • in 2021 saw GAB losing 70 gigabytes of data, including sensitive user information (Source: ARSTechnica).

Evolving Threats and Recent Developments

using The landscape of SQLi threats is not static; it continues to evolve with hackers employing sophisticated techniques and leveraging AI to bypass modern security measures.

Notably, a new SQL injection method discovered in early 2023 used JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) commands to circumvent Web Application Firewalls (WAFs), including those provided by a Large Company. This breach not only facilitated unauthorized data access but also allowed attackers to steal administrator session cookies, further compounding the security implications (Source: Claroty).

The Persistent Challenge

In 2023, 2159 vulnerabilities with the type “SQL injections” have been accepted as a CVE. The trend is significant.

Despite the known risks and the availability of ‘traditional’ tools, SQL injection attacks persist at an alarming rate. A combination of factors contributes to this ongoing threat:

  • Lack of Developer Security Awareness: Probably a critical gap in adequate security knowledge and understanding among developers, leading to vulnerabilities in application design and implementation.
  • Not enough Efficient Testing Methods: Automated testing tools may fail to detect SQLi vulnerabilities accurately, resulting in overlooked threats.
  • Database Access Misuse: Misapplication of database access libraries can lead to a false sense of security, obscuring potential SQLi vulnerabilities.

Towards a Solution. SQL Injection Protection.

Addressing the SQLi threat requires a multifaceted approach, combining SQL development with state-of-the-art writing, improved testing methodologies, and the correct use of database access tools. Now, the technology allows to protect accurately against SQL Injection.

The development and adoption of innovative solutions like “Sqlephant” promise near-immediate vulnerability remediation, shifting the cybersecurity paradigm from reactive to proactive.

As an example Sqlephant‘s SQLi Fixer solution (#SQLiFixer), patented (*), fast, automated, secured and fully integrated in the developers’ environment, provides a real protection against SQL injection, at the source. It detects and fix all vulnerabilities, effectively, systematically and with near-immediate effect for SQLi Protection.

As we navigate the complexities of cybersecurity, the fight against SQL injection attacks remains a cornerstone of cybersecurity strategy. It is imperative for organisations to secure accurately their source code, stay vigilant, update their security protocols regularly, and embrace both traditional and cutting-edge solutions to safeguard their digital assets against this ever-present threat.

#SQLdevelopment #SQLiSecurity #SQLinjectionProtection #CyberSecurity

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