In 2014, approximately one billion records of personally identifiable information (PII) were leaked online, according to IBM X-Force.
IBM researchers say cyberattackers are more often applying creative ways and new approaches to fundamental attacks including DDoS and the use of malware in order to steal valuable information, ranging from sensitive data which can be used in identity theft to financial account details. As a result of the evolving threat landscape, 2013 saw a surge in leaked records, with approximately 800,000 stolen. However, there was a rise of 25 percent in leaked records, reaching a staggering one billion.
The majority of these records were stolen from US companies.
We saw a number of high-profile attacks taking place across the year. From JPMorgan to Target and Sony, companies have had to deal with the aftermath of cyberattacks which have resulted in the loss of customer and employee records, email and communications as well as financial data in some circumstances.