IT security leaders at three-out-of-four global businesses expect an email-borne attack will have serious consequences for their organization in the coming year, with the increasing sophistication of attacks a top concern, according to the 2023 State of Email Security (SOES) report.
Businesses’ use of email is increasing, with 82% of companies reporting a higher volume of email in 2022 compared with 2021 and 2020, the 2023 SOES report found. More email has led to more email-based threats, and 74% of respondents said these have risen over the past 12 months. While the increasing number of threats is a problem, it’s the growing sophistication of email attacks that poses the greatest danger, according to the report. “Cybercriminals continue to refine and adapt their strategies, and malware kits on the dark web make it possible even for common criminals without technology smarts to employ highly sophisticated methods of incursion,” it read. The increasingly sophisticated nature of attacks is the biggest challenge for 59% of respondents, with 76% predicting that an email-borne attack will have serious consequences for their organization in the coming year. Of these, 7% believe that such an attack is “inevitable,” while another three out of 10 consider it “extremely likely.”