92% of Mexican companies are victims of cyber-attacks

Last year

, 92% of companies in Mexico suffered cyber-attacks of some kind, according to Kroll consulting agency .

The firm, which specializes in cyber-security , stated that the subject had become very relevant in the country, due to hackers’ perseverance in conducting cyber-attacks to banking, telecommunications, and manufacturing organizations . Hackers usually operate by using some type of malware , through which 25% of cyber-attacks are conducted in Mexico.

Kroll consulting pointed out that cyber-attacks to private companies had grown from 82% in 2016 to 92% in 2017 , mostly resulting in data elimination .

The second most frequent attacks consisted of virus and worm installations in company hardware , followed by phishing attacks hidden in e-mails , and stolen equipment with confidential information for the companies’ operation.

According to Kroll, most of the information stolen during a cyber-attacks are employee records , which constituted a 55% of all stolen information, followed by client records and both physical and virtual assets .

The consulting firm pointed out that, in the past 12 months, most companies have suffered at least one type of cyber-attack, from which 34% is conducted randomly , although the remaining 66% is completely intentional .

Kroll stated that 20% of cyber-attacks are due to employees’ mistakes and failing to follow security protocols established by companies.

“It is not just the private sector that must be alert to security breaches in their systems. The government should also become more involved in order to address the subject of cyber-security , which would both reassure Mexican entrepreneurs and benefit government institutions in different sectors such as health, tourism, economy, and banking, to mention a few, increasing the confidence and cooperation between both sectors,” the company explained.

Kroll stressed that the subject of cyber-security has become a top priority in the agenda of Mexican private companies and institutions.

“Cyber-attacks occurred in the past month, such as the WannaCry , which affected operations from several institutions in the financial and telecommunications sector, were a wake up call for companies to take appropriate action in the face of these attacks,” the firm concluded.

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