Phishing attacks bombard state and local authorities

According to SC Media, state and local agencies across the U.S. saw a 360% increase in attempted phishing attacks over a 12-month period beginning in May 2023.

According to a study by Abnormal Security, the increase in attacks on business email, which increased by 70% over the same period, has contributed to the increasing prevalence of phishing attacks against government agencies.

In addition, account takeover attacks, which involve hijacking administrator accounts to compromise government networks, increased by 43% during the study period. Governments’ vulnerability to BEC attacks is due to the public availability of operational, procedural and personnel information as part of transparency requirements, said Abnormal Security researcher Callie Baron.

“Cybercriminals can exploit this information to craft more targeted and convincing malicious emails that are more likely to entice victims to comply with fraudulent requests,” Baron noted, adding that authorities’ limited cybersecurity resources also hamper the detection of successful account takeovers.

Read the full story at SC Media.