KUWAIT: Trend Micro Incorporated, a global leader in cybersecurity solutions, yesterday released its Midyear Security Roundup for H1 2021: Attacks from All Angles. The report shares insights on the evolved threat landscape from the first half of the year and provides strategic guidance for leaders to protect their organizations in the digital economy.

The report states that globally Trend Micro solutions blocked 40.9 billion email threats, malicious files and malicious URLs for customers in H1 2021, with a 47 percent year-on-year increase. Ransomware remained the standout threat in the first half of the year as cybercriminals continued to target big-name victims. They used Advanced Persistent Threat tools and techniques to steal and encrypt victims' data. The banking industry was disproportionately affected, experiencing a 1,318 percent year-on-year increase in ransomware attacks in the first half of 2021.

In Kuwait, Trend Micro solutions detected and blocked nearly 6 million (5,997,116) email threats, prevented over 1.3 million (1,393,583) malicious URL victim attacks, and over 2775 URL hosts. In addition, over 749K (749,723) malware attacks were identified and stopped. The report also shows that home networks in Kuwait were a major attraction for cybercriminals looking to pivot to corporate systems, devices, and networks.

Trend Micro's Smart Home Network (SHN) solutions blocked over 78K (78,666) SHN inbound and outbound attacks combined, preventing nearly 660K (659,883) such SHN events for hackers to target or control home devices from executing malware, obtaining sensitive information, intercepting communications, or launching external attacks.

"In the last few months, organizations went through a series of changes whilst accommodating the impact of the pandemic, one of the most significant ones was undergoing accelerated digital transformation," said Assad Arabi, Managing Director, Trend Micro Gulf Cluster. "Today, companies need robust security solutions that can safeguard their journeys at all stages to thrive in this new digital era. Our mid-year-round report for H1 2021 shares insights that will help enterprises in the country to take suitable decisions to tackle the modern-day threats effectively and prepare for the future.

Trend Micro has been collaborating with the public and private sectors to raise awareness and resolve gaps to enable secure digital transformation journeys for organizations in Kuwait. The company is on the forefront in introducing new security solutions for businesses, leaving no stone unturned in providing enhanced visibility, threat intelligence, and extended detection and response at every stage of their IT journeys.

To continue its pursuit against the evolving threat landscape, Trend Micro will be hosting CLOUDSEC 2021 from November 16th to 18th, 2021, to further empower organizations in the MENA region to reimagine their cloud security. During the event industry leaders, experts, and specialists will discuss recent cyber security trends, followed by engaging panels discussions and seminars, and new-age initiatives securing every stage of the digital transformation, from the edge to the cloud.