TechRepublic reports that cybersecurity professionals encountered significant cybersecurity challenges in 2024, including the fact that hackers were able to exploit new vulnerabilities within two days in 61% of cases that year, as shown in SonicWall’s 2025 Annual Threat Report.
According to the report, the average time for organizations to apply patches ranged from 120 to 150 days, highlighting a critical gap in defenses. SonicWall researchers also identified 210,258 new malware variants last year.
The report detailed the growing financial impact of cyberattacks, with average ransomware payments reaching $850,700 and total losses, including downtime and recovery costs, often exceeding $4.91 million. Business email compromise attacks alone caused global losses of over $2.95 billion.
Latin America saw a 259% surge in ransomware attacks, while North America experienced an 8% increase. The healthcare sector in the United States faced unprecedented challenges, with over 198 million patients impacted by ransomware.
The report highlighted a rise in double and triple extortion tactics, particularly in healthcare, where attackers sometimes directly threatened patients.
SonicWall urged small and medium-sized businesses to strengthen their cybersecurity by partnering with managed service providers or managed security service providers for real-time monitoring, rapid patching, and enhanced security strategies.
