As cyberattacks are growing in severity and scale, a new FBI report has found that government facilities were the third largest target for cybersecurity hackers in 2023.
The FBI issued the report – titled the Internet Crime Report 2023 – on March 7 to showcase some of the major cybersecurity complaints and metrics that have been plaguing various government entities.
“Today’s cyber landscape is threatened by a multitude of malicious actors who have the tools to conduct large-scale fraud schemes, hold our money and data for ransom, and endanger our national security. Profit-driven cybercriminals and nation-state adversaries alike have the capability to paralyze entire school systems, police departments, healthcare facilities, and individual private sector entities,” stated Timothy Langan, executive assistant director at the FBI.
Out of the 1,193 complaints from organizations that belong to a critical infrastructure sector, 156 were reported from the government facilities sector to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).
The top targets include the healthcare and public health sector at 249 complaints and the critical manufacturing sector at 218 complaints – with a total loss of $12.5 billion in 2023 across all cybersecurity complaints reported to the IC3.
Among some of the most prominent cybersecurity hacking groups wreaking havoc across the cybersecurity landscape included LockBit, ALPHV/BlackCat, Akira, Royal, and Black Basta.
“The FBI continues to combat this evolving cyber threat. Our strategy focuses on building strong partnerships with the private sector; removing threats from US networks; pulling back the cloak of anonymity many of these actors hide behind; and hitting cybercriminals where it hurts: their wallets, including their virtual wallets,” added Langan.
