Cyber attack overtakes human error as top cause of data loss

Cyber attacks are now the number one cause of data loss, according to research from Databarracks, marking the first time cyber has overtaken human error as the top cause of data loss.

Some 38% of 400 organisations polled by Databarracks reported cyber attack and internal breaches as a cause of data loss in 2022.

Barnaby Mote, managing director of Databarracks commented: “For many of us, these results should come as no surprise. Data loss caused by cyber attacks has been increasing year on year since we began the Data Health Check in 2008. In a relatively short space of time, we’ve watched cyber attacks go from minor threat, to where we are today as the leading cause of data loss for organisations.

“The seriousness of the situation cannot be overstated. The other causes of data loss have not gone away. IT teams are still dealing with similar numbers of incidents caused by human error and hardware or software failure. The growth is in addition to these causes. It is a significant burden because recovery from cyber-related data loss is typically far more difficult and time consuming.”

Databarracks’ research also found, perhaps unsurprisingly, that ransomware is currently the most common form of cyber attack.

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