Nearly 10 million devices fell victim to data-stealing malware in 2023, this according to Kaspersky Digital Footprint Intelligence report where it said cybercriminals are pilfering an average of 50.9 login credentials per infected device, noting that the threat posed by data-stealers is growing for both consumers and businesses.
Among the domains, .com leads in compromised accounts, followed by domain zones associated with Brazil (.br), India (.in), Colombia (.co), and Vietnam (.vn). In the .my domain, associated with Malaysia, compromised accounts reached 1.6 million in 2023 it said.
Even though the number of log-files – and therefore infections – in 2023 has only experienced a marginal decline of 9 percent compared to 2022, it doesn’t imply that cybercriminal demand for logins and passwords has stagnated. It is possible that some credentials compromised in 2023 could be leaked to the dark web at some point during the current year. Therefore, the actual number of infections is likely to be even higher than 10 million. According to Kaspersky’s assessment of infostealer log-file dynamics, the number of infections that occurred in 2023 is projected to reach roughly 16,000,000.
So how does one guard oneself from this attacks, the security company said one way is to use a comprehensive security solution for any device. This will help prevent infections and alert them to dangers, such as suspicious sites or phishing emails that can be an initial vector for infection. Moreover, companies can help their users, employees and partners protect themselves from the threat this way. They can proactively monitor leaks and prompt users to change leaked passwords
immediately.
