E-Business
Hackers Attacked Businesses 22m Times In Last 7 Days Globally
According to data compiled and analyzed by Atlas VPN, hackers attacked businesses more than 22 million times during the last week worldwide. Over 63% of these hacking attempts were malware attacks.
Malware is a type of software that tends to either steal users’ files or encrypt them and render them useless until a password is entered that will decrypt the data. Hackers demand a ransom in order for you to retrieve the password, hence the commonly used name ransomware.
Attacks monitored also include phishing and Command & Control (C&C) attacks.
Phishing is the fraudulent attempt to obtain sensitive information such as usernames, passwords, and credit card details by pretending to be a trusted figure, such as a bank employee or even your colleague.
A Command & Control (C&C) attack is when hackers attempt to take over control of a system and then steal or delete data. C&C attacks can also be used as a part of a phishing scam or a way to infect the network with malware.
Atlas VPN has extracted and organized the data acquired from a cybersecurity giant Akamai, that provides real-time data on cyberattacks that their corporate customers are under. They catch a significant amount of attacks globally since they are one of the largest distributed computing platforms in the world. They are responsible for serving between 15%-30% of web traffic globally.
On average, there were 3.26 million cyberattacks daily throughout last week. From the chart, we can see that hackers carried most cyberattacks on April 15, with a total of over 3.6 million intrusion attempts. Interestingly, most of these cyberattacks were malware attacks.
The reason being, it is usually the easiest way to infiltrate companies’ networks and to steal or freeze data and to demand a ransom. On average, there were 2,070,297 malware attacks per day during last week. Malware attacks comprised 63% of the total attacks.
In comparison, phishing attacks and C&C attacks comprised 11% and 26% of total attacks, respectively.
It seems that even some hackers took the last Saturday (April 18) off, since there were -12% fewer attacks than the average day.
Compared to the previous week, (April 6-12) where the total volume of attacks was 23,807,517, this week hackers attacked enterprises around 1 million times less.
During the last 30 days, cybercriminals tried to infiltrate corporate networks nearly 100 million times.
Hackers attacked businesses using malware over 57 million times. This comprises almost 58% of the total cyber attacks.
Moreover, C&C attacks were the second most common type used by hackers with over 27 million attacks in the last 30 days. In other words, C&C amounts to over 27% of all attacks on enterprises.
Finally, phishing scams are the least common type of attacks used by hackers, with a total of over 15 million attacks in the same time-frame. This accounts for over 15% of the total volume of attacks.
It seems that hackers do not have a preference for the day of the week or the time of the month for cyberattacks.
The smallest number of total attacks happened on March 23 (Monday) and April 18 (Saturday).
In contrast, the most active days were April 5 (Sunday) and April 6 (Monday). In these two days alone, cybercriminals tried to infiltrate corporate networks 8,821,850 times.
As mentioned in the methodology, Akamai services around 15-30% of web traffic worldwide. Meaning, at most, they are able to detect less than one-third of the total attacks.
Taking this into account, a conservative estimate of the total volume of hacker attacks on business per month could reach a staggering 300,000,000, yes 300 million.
If we would lean towards the fact that Akamai only catches 15% of cyber-attacks globally, then the number of actual attacks happening per month could reach as much as 600 million.
By these estimations, hackers could be attacking corporations 20 million times per day globally.
This is a rough estimate; however, the numbers do not seem so extreme considering the fact that at least 7.9 billion records, including credit card numbers and other highly sensitive information, have been exposed through hacker attacks in 2019.
In 2020, due to the increased internet usage and more people working from home due to the coronavirus pandemic, this could be a record year for both hacker attacks and the number of records breached.
Dr Adebowale Adedokun, director-general, Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), has reaffirmed the bureau’s commitment to data protection in Nigeria.
He disclosed this in a statement at the weekend by Zira Nagga, head of Public Relations, BPP, following a courtesy visit by a delegation from the National Data Protection Commission (NDPC).
Adedokun stressed that data protection is vital to Nigeria’s economy and development, particularly in areas such as demography, health, education, and other key sectors.
He emphasised that no country should leave its data unprotected, as it plays a crucial role in future planning and national development.
“Data governs the world. It is essential to technological progress and must be protected for a country or business to be taken seriously,” he said.
Adedokun described the visit, aimed at fostering partnership on data policy implementation and protection, as timely and aligned with national goals.
He said the BPP would collaborate closely with the NDPC to boost data development, capacity building, and enhance the procurement system.
“The BPP will support compliance as part of the ‘Nigeria First’ Policy, although it is not a core procurement eligibility requirement,” he explained.
He suggested a hybrid training model to help build strong capacity in data protection, privacy awareness, and policy understanding.
According to him, a dynamic training approach will reduce logistics costs and improve public confidence in data safety and privacy.
Dr Vincent Olatunji, CEO, and national commissioner, NDPC, praised Adedokun and the BPP for supporting data protection initiatives.
He said the partnership supports President Bola Tinubu’s vision and will strengthen data privacy across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
“The collaboration will create awareness and train BPP staff to ensure a firm grasp of data protection principles and policies,” he stated.
Olatunji said the NDPC would establish a working group to finalise a Memorandum of Understanding beneficial to both institutions.
He added that President Tinubu signed the NDPC into law on 12 June 2023 to uphold citizens’ rights and protect national and business data.
Olatunji also noted that strict legal measures were in place to enforce data protection and ensure full compliance nationwide.
Both agencies agreed to form a team to sign the MoU and focus on capacity building and data management in procurement and beyond.
President Bola Tinubu said that his administration has initiated a project to install fibre optic cables across the country, aimed at enhancing the socio-economic development of Nigeria.
His plans were contained in a speech he delivered at a joint session of the National Assembly in commemoration of Democracy Day on Thursday, June 12.
He said the fibre optic layout is part of other projects being embarked on.
“In addition, we have embarked on an ambitious project to lay fibre optic cables across the nation, a transformative step toward bridging the digital divide and fostering greater connectivity.
“This initiative promises not only to enhance the speed and reliability of internet access but also to revolutionise how businesses operate, how students learn, and how communities stay connected,” Tinubu stated.
He maintained that by extending this critical infrastructure, his government is empowering entrepreneurs, enabling digital education, and providing the tools for our youth to compete in a globalised world.
In a most recent report on Internet connectivity, The ICIR pointed out how Nigeria has faced setbacks in its deployment of fibre optic cables and needs a transformation.
The challenges revolve around vandalism, inadequate coordination between road construction and telecom infrastructure, and varying right-of-way (RoW) charges across states.
Among industry experts, these issues impact network outages, increase repair costs, and hinder broadband expansion efforts.
It has also further threatened the digital economy, leading to slower Internet speeds, dropped calls, and unreliable connectivity among others.
African startups raised more than $345 million across 65 deals in May, more than double the amount raised in the same period of last year, according to a report by Briter, a research and business intelligence firm.
The report disclosed that both the number of deals and participating companies declined, confirming a growing trend of fewer companies raising funds in larger sizes.
It said fintech attracted the highest share of funding in May, accounting for 34 percent of the total, while cleantech followed closely, driven by a debt deal from Sun King. The company raised $80 million (in local currency) to expand clean energy access in Nigeria.
“Equity remains the primary instrument in terms of total value. There’s no doubt about it; in fact, equity deals with disclosed amounts captured more than half of the total funding volume in May.
“However, debt financing is increasingly proving its weight. Although it accounted for only 8 percent of all deals, it represented 32 percent of the total funding, highlighting the typically larger size of debt transactions. With the rise of specialised vehicles targeting early-stage businesses, debt is becoming an increasingly important part of Africa’s innovation funding landscape,” it said.
Briter’s report added that grants continued to play a vital role in early-stage support, especially in the education technology (EdTech) sector. The Mastercard Foundation led the pack in grant activity, funding a new cohort of EdTech innovators in Nigeria and Kenya. Each selected startup is set to receive $100,000 in grant funding, in addition to mentorship and business development support.
Multilaterals also made a strong showing in May, it said. The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), a World Bank Group member, issued a $179.6 million guarantee to CleanTech firm KOKO Networks. The support will help scale its clean energy solutions across Kenya.
“This deal not only demonstrates growing international confidence in African climate ventures but also signals a promising pathway for other asset-intensive startups in clean cooking, agriculture, and renewable energy,” the report said.
From a geographic perspective, Egypt emerged as the continent’s fundraising powerhouse for the month, contributing 51 percent of all funding raised. The country recorded 12 deals across equity, debt, and bond instruments. Notably, FinTech platform MNT-Halan raised $50 million through a bond issuance, further illustrating the diversification of capital-raising mechanisms in the region.
Outside Egypt, funding was distributed across Africa’s three other key markets, which are Egypt, Nigeria, and Kenya, with limited activity recorded in countries such as Ghana, Tunisia, Morocco, and Uganda, each registering between one and three deals.
In terms of exits, the African tech landscape continues to mature. Three companies—Baobab+, Qardy, and Shopa—were acquired in May, bringing the total number of exits this year to 22. This already surpasses last year’s count for the same period. Qardy was acquired by Catalyst Partners Middle East (CPME) in a disclosed deal valued at $23 million, the report added.
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