Cyber criminals are becoming more sophisticated at picking our virtual pockets. And most of us remain woefully unprepared.
According to a 2016 survey conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers, organizations rank cybercrime as the second most reported type of economic crime, up from fourth place. (It’s worth noting that most cybercrimes go unreported.)
In the survey, 32 percent of organizations admitted they had been a victim of cybercrime and 34 percent expected to become a victim in the next two years. Only 37 percent had a plan to respond to these incidents.
Such stats indicate widespread denial in the face of a growing problem. Online crime has way beyond teenage hackers pushing boundaries and into elaborate worldwide syndicates that are well organized and use sophisticated tools. They steal personal data, passwords and other information, then use it to blackmail businesses or scam consumers. Or they might sell it on the black market, where others can use it to steal identities and run up credit card charges.
Here are 10 of the most notable cybercrimes, either by size or significance. They illustrate the growing threat to businesses, consumers and governments.
Rarely a week goes by without news of another data breach at another corporation. Check out this infographic, compliments of TheBestVPN, for a more information on cyber criminals, cyber thieves, and the current state of data breaches:
