During April more than 400 million malware infections were detected, equating to over 10 million cases each day.
This was revealed by data compiled by Atlas VPN, which also showed that the number of infections worldwide fluctuated between 10 and 16 million daily cases, reaching the lowest point on 5 April and the highest on 16 April.
Central Asia suffered the largest number of local attacks, according to Kaspersky’s antivirus solutions. At least 32% of devices in Tajikistan were exposed to malware, followed by Uzbekistan, with 31%. In China, Kaspersky detected malware in nearly 27% of the devices that use their software.
The same month, Microsoft detected 6.5 million malware infections in different industries, although education was revealed as the main target, with 64% of attacks directed at this sector. Business and professional services came in second, with 9% of infections or 623 000 incidents. With nearly 540 000 cases, retail and consumer goods experienced 8% of all infections, while the financial and insurance services industry had 5% of malware infections globally, with Microsoft detecting nearly 330 000 cases in this sector. Hot on its heels is the healthcare industry with nearly 270 000 infections or 4%.
Rachel Welsh, COO of Atlas VPN, says educational institutions were exposed to the largest number of malware attacks because criminals expect school staff or students are not well-trained in cyber security.
"If schools are planning on holding exams remotely, they should prepare and get experienced IT specialists to check the systems out,” she advises.
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