The Identity Theft Resource Center has published a new report highlighting the fact that the number of publicly reported data breaches in 2021 has already surpassed the total for 2020. Therefore, 2021 will be a record year in terms of data breaches. In 2020, there were 1108 publicly reported data breaches total, however, the first three quarters of 2021 saw 1291 data breaches. Although 2017 still holds the record for the highest number of breaches at 1529, 2021 is set to exceed this total.
Phishing and ransomware are leading attack methods this year, and 2021 is just 238 breaches away from setting an all-time record. The IRTC’s figures include traditional breaches in which malicious third parties steal data from organizations and cases in which cloud misconfiguration leads to data leaking into the public domain, freely accessible.
Read More: Data Breach Volumes for 2021 Already Exceed 2020 Total
