Cybercrime is a global-wide problem with serious financial implications. To put it in perspective, consider the following staggering statistic:
Cybersecurity Ventures, which runs the editorial publication Cybercrime Magazine, estimates that cybercrime will cost the world $10.5 trillion dollars annually by the year 2025. That’s up—way up—from a reported $3 billion in 2015.
The world relies heavily on things like technology and the internet, more so than ever before in history. We work online, shop online, socialize online, order food online, plan vacations online, go to school online, buy cars online, and even join entire virtual communities online.
As a society, we need the internet to thrive. We need it to be productive. We need it to make a living. Unfortunately, this level of reliance makes everyone more vulnerable to cybercriminals and cyberattacks.
But what are the most prevalent forms of cybercrime and how are they impacting people today?
Here is a big list of cybercrime statistics for 2022 that can put things into perspective for you:
Identity Theft
Identity theft happens when a criminal gains access to your personal information and uses it to benefit financially. Examples of your personal information include your full name, address, date of birth, social security number, Federal tax ID number, name of spouse, name of children, name of employer, and the passwords you use to access financial accounts.
Here are seven identity theft statistics you should be aware of this year:
“47 percent of Americans experienced financial identity theft in 2020.” — Identity Force
“There were 4.8 million identity theft and fraud reports received by the FTC in 2020, up 45 percent from 3.3 million in 2019.” — Insurance Information Institute
“Losses from identity theft cases cost $502.5 billion in 2019 and increased 42 percent to $712.4 billion in 2020.” — Insurance Information Institute
“Americans are 50% more likely to have their identities stolen.” — Legaljobs
In 2020, “median fraud losses were $635 for victims age 70 to 79; $436 for those 60 to 69; $325 for those 50 to 59; $278 for those 40 to 49; $250 for those 30 to 39; $324 for those 20 to 29; and $180 for those 19 and younger.” — AARP
“Someone becomes the victim of identity fraud every 14 seconds.” — Fortunely
Roughly 40% of criminals use the telephone as their main method of initial contact when stealing an identity. — ID Strong
To avoid becoming a victim in 2022, read our blog article about identity theft to find out if you’re at risk and what you can do about it.
Phishing Scams
Phishing scams are attempts by criminals to trick you into providing them with your personal identifiable information (pii).
As we’ve shared before, phishing criminals attempt to make emails, text, and phone calls look or sound like they are from reputable companies that you will recognize. For example, they might attempt to make you believe you’re receiving legitimate communication from your bank, the social security administration, the IRS, your utility company, your credit card company, your mortgage company, your local city government, or a brand you’ve purchased from before.
The goal of a phishing scam is to get information from you that can be used to steal your identity or gain access to your money.
Here are seven phishing scam statistics you should be aware of this year:
In 2019, over 100,000 people fell victim to phishing crimes, according to a report on internet crimes published by the FBI. That year, the amount of money lost by victims surpassed $57 million dollars. — FBI
“Phishing attacks nearly doubled from 2019 to 2020, ransomware payouts rose 82% in the first half of 2021, and supply chain attacks are up 42%.” — Consumer Affairs
“96% of phishing attacks arrive by email. Another 3% are carried out through malicious websites and just 1% via phone.” — Tessian
“IC3’s report found that phishing, including vishing, SMiShing and pharming, was the most prevalent threat in the US in 2020, with 241,342 victims.” — Expert Insights
“A recent study by INKY found Microsoft to be the most impersonated brand, with Microsoft-related phishing emails accounting for almost 70% of brand impersonation phishing attempts in 2020, followed by Zoom, Amazon, Chase Bank and RingCentral.” — Expert Insights
“An analysis of more than 55 million emails reveals that one in every 99 emails is a phishing attack. — Clearedin
“Research shows that the cost of phishing attacks has nearly quadrupled over the past six years: Large U.S. companies are now losing, on average, $14.8 million annually, or $1,500 per employee.” — Threatpost
Don’t let criminals gain access to your personal information. Read our blog article about phishing to understand how to recognize attempts and how to better protect yourself.
Data Breaches
Data breaches have wreaked havoc on big companies and brands in recent history. A data breach happens when a hacker or cybercriminal gains access to a company’s digital infrastructure or database and steals personal information from its users.
Here are five data breach statistics you should be aware of this year:
“The average size of a data breach is 25,575 records.” — UpGuard
“Yahoo holds the record for the largest data breach with an estimated 3 billion user accounts impacted.” — UpGuard
“On February 26, 2020, it was revealed that Clearview AI, a facial-recognition company that contracts with powerful law-enforcement agencies had its entire client list and over 3 billion photos stolen.” — UpGuard
“The Identity Theft Research Center (ITRC) has reported an increase of 17% in the number of recorded data breaches during 2021 in comparison to 2020.” — ZDNET
“76% of organizations worldwide experienced a phishing attack in the past year. — TechJury
Read this blog article from NerdWallet to learn how to protect yourself in the event that one of the companies or websites you use experiences a data breach.
Malware & Ransomware Attacks
Malware is malicious software that has been developed by a cybercriminal for the purpose of infecting your computer and gaining access to personal information.
Ransomware is a form of malware that holds a person’s personal information hostage until the victim pays a criminal an agreed upon amount of money, also known as a ransom or cyberextortion.
Here are five malware and ransomware statistics you should be aware of this year:
“Ransomware attacks are estimated to cost $6 trillion annually by 2021. — Purplesec
“Ransomware payouts have increased dramatically in 2021, with one case reportedly causing the victims to pay out an astonishing $50 million.” — Consumer Affairs
“The average ransom fee requested has increased from $5,000 in 2018 to around $200,000 in 2020.” — Varonis
“Only around 38% of local and state government employees are trained in ransomware attack prevention.” — Varonis
“A 2017 report from Cybersecurity Ventures predicted ransomware damages would cost the world $5 billion in 2017, up from $325 million in 2015 — a 15X increase in just two years. The damages for 2018 were estimated at $8 billion, and for 2019 the figure rose to $11.5 billion.” — Cybercrime Magazine
Read this blog article from Norton to find out what you should do if you become a victim of malware.
Final Thoughts
The list of cybercrimes highlighted in this article is not exhaustive—there are other crimes that are becoming more prevalent in the U.S., like home title fraud.
The best way to protect yourself from cybercriminals is to stay informed about trends, familiarize yourself with the tactics criminals are using to try to gain access to personal information, and keep your information safe and secure by using strong passwords and always keeping operating systems up to date.
