Ransomware is the key security topic of 2016, according to a report by the Woburn, Mass.-based cybersecurity company Kaspersky Lab.
Here's what you need to know:
1. In the first quarter of 2016, ransomware attacked a business every 2 minutes, on average; in the third quarter of 2016, ransomware attacked a business every 40 seconds. This trend represents a three-fold increase.
2. One in every five businesses throughout the world has suffered a direct ransomware attack or an IT security incident resulting from a ransomware attack.
3. In 2016, more than 62 new ransomware families were introduced.
4. In the healthcare industry, 16 percent of facilities have suffered a ransomware attack; the sector with the highest rate of attack was education (23 percent) and the lowest was retail and leisure (16 percent).
5. When considering small and medium businesses, one in five of those who paid the ransom never had their data accessibility returned.