CircleID

The MarkMonitor Fraud Intelligence Report for the first quarter of 2011 is now available. The findings are:

Phishing Attacks Reversed Decline – Phish attack volume increased 17% from the previous quarter to 99,800 attacks.

Organizations Targeted Continued Growth Trend – The number of targeted organizations increased 11% from the fourth quarter of 2010, to 511.

Attacks per Organization Increased Slightly – Attacks per organization increased 6% from Q4 2010 to 195.

Financial Sector Continued as Most Popular Phishing Sector – The Financial sector accounted for 47% of phish attacks in the first quarter of 2011, while the Payment Services sector accounted for 27%.

The Financial sector accounted for 47% of phish attacks in the first quarter of 2011, while the Payment Services sector accounted for 27%. The online Gaming sector attracted 7% of total phish. Other significant sectors include Auctions and Social Networking, each with around 5% of total phish.

Gaming, Auction and Social Networking Sectors Reversed Previous Declines – Auction sector phish increased 47% quarter-over-quarter to 5,414 attacks. Gaming sector phish increased 60% from the previous quarter to 6,834 attacks. Social Networking sector phish increased 40% from the previous quarter to 4,768 attacks.

Phishing Attacks Targeting Spanish Brands Doubled – Attacks targeting Spanish brands grew 127% from the previous quarter. However, North American brands continued to attract the lion's share of attacks, accounting for 74% of phishing attacks in the first quarter. Western European brands accounted for 18% of phish.

Phishing Attacks Hosted in the UK and Russia Showed Substantial Growth – In the first quarter, phish hosted in the UK grew 63% and Russian-hosted phish grew 93%. As with targeted brands, however, North America hosted the majority of phishing attacks, with 61% of total attacks in the first quarter. Western Europe followed, hosting 19% of phishing attacks in the same period.

The full report available for download here: MarkMonitor Fraud Intelligence Report, Q1 2011

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Related topics: Cyberattack, Cybercrime, Security