34 percent of cyber attacks against European companies are attributable to phishing. Furthermore, the European manufacturing industry was the most frequent target of cyber attacks in 2022. It also appears that the war in Ukraine has an increasing impact on the digital security of European parties.
This is according to the report ‘European Cybersecurity Threats, 2022’ by Forrester Research. The market researcher will publish the report in October’s run-up to Cybersecurity Awareness Month. In the report, Forrester Research outlines, among other things, the most important cyber threats to European companies. However, also consider the impact of the war in Ukraine on the digital security of European parties.
Phishing is the main threat here; 34 percent of European companies that experienced a cyber attack attribute it to phishing. Attacks on the supply chain or third parties led to a cyberattack in 32 percent, while an equally large group points to a vulnerability in the software.
Vulnerabilities in web applications such as SQLi, XSS and RFI also lead to problems; 29 percent of European companies report that this was the source of a cyber attack. In addition, 28 percent of the cases involved misuse of administrator tools.
As for Ukraine, Forrester Research warns that the impact on digital security extends beyond the conflict zone. Previously, mainly companies in Ukraine were the target of destructive malware, but European parties are now increasingly targeted.
Forrester advises companies to consult closely with threat intelligence providers to assess the impact of the war on their security. However, Forrester also advises trusting only reliable sources of information, as disinformation is an essential resource that Russian attackers use.
In addition, Forrester recommends that companies partner with European and national cybersecurity organizations, such as the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA), the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC), the Digital Trust Center (DTC) and the Cyber Security Incident Response Team for digital service providers (CSIRT-DSP).