Cyberattacks hit 82% of small and medium-sized companies in the region and the reason is the employees

Hackers and cybercriminals expanded their cyberattacks last year to include small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as large companies operating in various sectors. According to a statement by Kaspersky, a cybersecurity company, 82% of companies with between 100 and 499 employees in the Middle East region were subjected to cyberattacks during the past year.

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The statement indicated that the hackers have begun to rely on the same mechanisms that were used with major international companies and institutions, which increases the seriousness of these attacks and their negative effects.

The increasing digital transformation of companies in the region has contributed to the rise of these attacks, as well as the decrease in the cost of cyberattacks of all kinds.

The cyberattacks that companies were subjected to last year were varied, as the report revealed the existence of three main types of attacks, foremost among them being phishing and exploitation of software vulnerabilities, in addition to the misuse of weak or stolen credentials, and remote external access attacks.

Attacks on large organizations also included other, more complex types, such as the use of widespread malware and ransomware, as well as hacking business email and exploiting vulnerabilities in artificial intelligence systems.

The human element is the major weakness

The statement pointed to a number of reasons that enhance the chances of success for cyberattacks against various institutions, foremost among them the human element, which is agreed upon by small and medium-sized enterprises.

The lack of experience among IT specialists and the inadequacy of information security policies contribute to an increased risk of cyberattacks, in addition to the high workload on the IT department.

Therefore, most companies have decided to improve their information security functions by increasing their cybersecurity budget this year, expanding their IT and cybersecurity teams, and offering new training courses in various cybersecurity fields to their employees.

Some companies have moved towards increasing their budgets for employing advanced information security solutions, ranging from expanded detection mechanisms to rapid response and information security management.