<p>Nearly 72 per cent of state and local government organisations globally attacked by ransomware had their data encrypted -- 7 per cent more than the cross-sector average last year, a report showed on Thursday.</p>.<p>In fact, only 20 per cent of state and local government organisations were able to stop the ransomware attack before data could be encrypted -- significantly less than the cross-sector average of 31 per cent, according to the report by cyber-security firm Sophos.</p>.<p>Around 58 per cent of local government organisations were hit by ransomware in 2021, up from 34 per cent in 2020.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read —<a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/technology/small-businesses-in-india-at-highest-ransomware-risk-report-1148913.html" target="_blank"> Small businesses in India at highest ransomware risk: Report</a></strong></p>.<p>This is a 70 per cent rise over the course of a year, demonstrating that adversaries have become considerably more capable of executing the most significant attacks at scale.</p>.<p>Traditionally, government organisations haven't been prime targets for ransomware attackers, since they don't have as much money as traditional businesses, and criminal groups are reticent to attract attention from law enforcement.</p>.<p>"However, when these organisations do get hit, they have little in the way of protection because they don't have the budget for additional, in-depth cybersecurity support, including threat hunting teams or security operations centres," said Chester Wisniewski, principal research scientist, Sophos.</p>.<p>In addition to experiencing a high encryption rate, the government sector also experienced a significant drop in the amount of encrypted data recovered after paying the ransom when compared to 2020 -- 58 per cent in 2021 versus 70 per cent in 2020. This was also lower than the cross-sector average of 61 per cent.</p>.<p>The cost for government organizations to remediate an attack was three times the average ransom the sector paid.</p>.<p>"If we look at what happened with the city of Atlanta, Georgia, back in 2018, they ultimately ended up paying $17 million to recover from an attack that asked for $50,000 dollars in ransom," said</p>
<p>Nearly 72 per cent of state and local government organisations globally attacked by ransomware had their data encrypted -- 7 per cent more than the cross-sector average last year, a report showed on Thursday.</p>.<p>In fact, only 20 per cent of state and local government organisations were able to stop the ransomware attack before data could be encrypted -- significantly less than the cross-sector average of 31 per cent, according to the report by cyber-security firm Sophos.</p>.<p>Around 58 per cent of local government organisations were hit by ransomware in 2021, up from 34 per cent in 2020.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read —<a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/technology/small-businesses-in-india-at-highest-ransomware-risk-report-1148913.html" target="_blank"> Small businesses in India at highest ransomware risk: Report</a></strong></p>.<p>This is a 70 per cent rise over the course of a year, demonstrating that adversaries have become considerably more capable of executing the most significant attacks at scale.</p>.<p>Traditionally, government organisations haven't been prime targets for ransomware attackers, since they don't have as much money as traditional businesses, and criminal groups are reticent to attract attention from law enforcement.</p>.<p>"However, when these organisations do get hit, they have little in the way of protection because they don't have the budget for additional, in-depth cybersecurity support, including threat hunting teams or security operations centres," said Chester Wisniewski, principal research scientist, Sophos.</p>.<p>In addition to experiencing a high encryption rate, the government sector also experienced a significant drop in the amount of encrypted data recovered after paying the ransom when compared to 2020 -- 58 per cent in 2021 versus 70 per cent in 2020. This was also lower than the cross-sector average of 61 per cent.</p>.<p>The cost for government organizations to remediate an attack was three times the average ransom the sector paid.</p>.<p>"If we look at what happened with the city of Atlanta, Georgia, back in 2018, they ultimately ended up paying $17 million to recover from an attack that asked for $50,000 dollars in ransom," said</p>