Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

Ransomware, Microsoft attacks are surging at the same time

Ransomware, Microsoft attacks are surging at the same time

Ransomware is spiking as cyberattacks on Microsoft jump, according to a report.

The two trends are overlapping in the wake of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s (CISA) recent alerts on ransomware attacks targeting Microsoft Exchange servers, according to Check Point Research (CPR).

The CPR report cited a 57% increase in ransomware attacks on organizations it tracks within the last six months and a 9% increase in ransomware attacks each month since the beginning of the year.


And the number of attacks on Microsoft Exchange servers tripled in the week before the report was published, bringing the total number of attacks on Microsoft Exchange servers documented by CPR to over 50,000. In response to these attacks, Microsoft Security Intelligence tweeted on March 11 that ransomware was being used to exploit Exchange Servers.

“Two trends are happening concurrently. One, cyberattacks targeting Microsoft Exchange servers are increasing sharply. Two, ransomware attacks are simultaneously rising steadily,” Lotem Finkelstein, manager of Threat Intelligence at Check Point, said in a statement.

Although CPR hasn’t been able yet to definitively determine that the two trends are directly related, it believes the Microsoft Exchange vulnerabilities opened a door.

“We’re urging organizations to act now,” Finkelstein said.

WannaCry ransomware is trending again too: CPR found the number of organizations affected by WannaCry has increased by 53%.

WannaCry is notorious as a ransomware worm that spread rapidly through a number of computer networks in May of 2017. It encrypts the files on the PC's hard drive, locking users out, then demands a ransom payment in bitcoin in order to decrypt them.

Since the beginning of the year, the number of organizations affected with WannaCry globally has increased by 53%, CPR said, adding that there are 40 times more affected organizations in March 2021, when compared to October 2020.

Ominously, CPR says the U.S. sees the most ransomware of any single country, with 12% of all ransomware attack attempts globally as well as the most Microsoft Exchange server attacks, with 49% attack attempts compared to other countries.

The culprits in the Microsoft attacks are a ransomware group known as BlackKingdom and another unknown group deploying a new malware strain called DearCry, according to CPR.

The top three industry sectors that saw the most ransomware attack attempts are government/military (18%), manufacturing (11%) and finance/banking (8%).

Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
High-Stakes Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway in Alaska
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
×