Trend Micro Incorporated, a global leader in cybersecurity solutions, today released its 2021 annual cybersecurity report: Navigating New Frontiers. The report highlights the growing rate of cyber-attacks by malicious actors on digital infrastructures and individuals in the modern-day hybrid work environment.

The report states that globally Trend Micro solutions stopped over 94.2bn threats in 2021, a 42 per cent increase in the number of detections recorded in 2020.

Attacks had surged over 53bn in the second half of 2021, blocking 41bn threats in H1 2021. Ransomware attackers are shifting their focus to critical businesses and industries more likely to pay, and double extortion tactics ensure that they are able to profit.

Ransomware-as-a-service offerings have opened the market to cybercriminals with limited technical knowledge, as well as given rise to more specialisation, such as initial access brokers who are now an essential part of the cybercrime supply chain.

Threat actors are getting better at exploiting human error to compromise cloud infrastructure and remote workers. Homeworkers are often prone to take more risks than those in the office, which makes phishing a greater risk.

In Oman, Trend Micro solutions detected and blocked over 4.1mn (4,153,443) email threats, 700,607 malware attacks, and over 4.6mn (4,629,874) URL victims’ attacks.

Furthermore, shielding remote learning and working, Smart Home Network (SHN) solutions protected devices and networks from 12,821 SHN inbound and outbound attacks and prevented 581,119 SHN events.

“Oman’s enterprises continue to display digital resilience through the challenges of unforeseen global events and have bravely faced an evolving threat landscape with increasingly sophisticated attacks,” said Assad Arabi, Managing Director, Gulf Cluster for Trend Micro.

“The modern-day, hybrid world has made it difficult for organisations to protect their digital environment, requiring security teams to bolster their security strategies to protect employees in and out of the office, as well as remote locations with unsecured public networks.

“The annual cybersecurity report provides the country’s enterprises with the insights they need to readjust their security stance and prompt them to adopt industry-leading innovations securing their digital journeys.”

According to Trend Micro’s Security Predictions report for 2022, better readiness for security teams against emerging threats is necessary across sectors. With these related insights, Oman seeks improvement within the movement against the threat landscape going forward.