Verizon Puts Data Breaches, Attack Patterns Under Microscope

by Sean Michael Kerner

The Verizon 2014 DBIR illustrates that attack patterns vary by industry. In the accommodation industry, for instance, 75 percent of attacks came by way of point-of-sale (POS) intrusions.

The Verizon 2014 DBIR examined the percent of breaches per asset category over time and found a steady trend of server breaches over the last five years.

Over the last 10 years, the breach discovery methods have changed positions, with fraud detection going from first to last and law enforcement going from last to first.

Over the last five years, the Verizon DBIR shows an increase in Web app attacks.

Crimeware is among the attack patterns analyzed in the 2014 DBIR. Overall, Verizon had 12,535 reported incidents of crimeware in 2013, with only 50 having a confirmed data disclosure. The discovery timeline for crimeware was rapid, with 32 percent of incidents detected within seconds.

The Verizon 2014 DBIR analyzed 511 total incidents of cyber-espionage, of which 306 had confirmed data disclosure. In fact, 87 percent of all cyber-espionage incidents analyzed by the DBIR were state-affiliated.

The 2014 DBIR found that Eastern Asia, which includes China and Korea, was responsible for 49 percent of reported incidents.