Cyber Threat Surge: Trend Micro Blocks 160 billion Global Incidents in 2023

Australia remains amongst top country rankings for malware detection

SYDNEY, March 11, 2024 Trend Micro Incorporated (TYO: 4704; TSE: 4704), a global cybersecurity leader, today revealed a global 10% annual increase in total threats blocked in 2023 and warned that attackers are using more advanced methods to target fewer victims with the potential for higher financial gains.

In 2023, Australia encountered nearly 176 million email threats and was among the top ten countries surveyed with the highest number of malware detections, representing 2.7% of the total global detections. Furthermore, the country has ranked eighth among countries with the highest detection of URL victims at 52 million.

Mick McCluney, Technical Director ANZ at Trend: "Globally, we're blocking more threats than ever before for our customers, and this is no different for Australia. A high detection of malicious URLs compared to other countries shows that this is becoming an effective attack vector for cyber criminals, and perhaps indicates a call for deeper employee education around phishing attacks in Australia.  Also, as our report demonstrates, network defenders must continue to proactively manage risk across the entire attack surface today. Understanding the strategies favoured by our adversaries is the foundation of effective defence."

Trend Micro blocked 161 billion global threats overall in 2023, compared to 82 billion threats five years ago. In 2023, threats blocked by email and web reputation dropped annually by 47% and 2%, respectively. Threats blocked by Trend's Mobile Application Reputation Service (-2%), Smart Home Network (-12%), and Internet of Things Reputation Service (-64%) also declined. However, there was a 35% annual increase in threats blocked under Trend's File Reputation Service (FRS).

To read a copy of the report, Calibrating Expansion: Annual Cybersecurity Threat Report, please visit: https://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/au/security/news/threat-landscape/calibrating-expansion-2023-annual-cybersecurity-threat-report

This could indicate that threat actors are choosing their targets more carefully. Instead of launching attacks on a wider range of users and relying on victims clicking on malicious links in websites and emails, they're targeting a smaller number of higher-profile victims with more sophisticated attacks. This might enable them to bypass early detection layers like network and email filters—which could explain the surge in malicious file detections at endpoints.

Some other global trends observed in the report include:


In light of these findings, Trend advises network defenders to:


About Trend Micro

Trend Micro, a global cybersecurity leader, helps make the world safe for exchanging digital information. Fueled by decades of security expertise, global threat research, and continuous innovation, Trend Micro's cybersecurity platform protects hundreds of thousands of organisations and millions of individuals across clouds, networks, devices, and endpoints. As a leader in cloud and enterprise cybersecurity, the platform delivers a powerful range of advanced threat defence techniques optimised for environments like AWS, Microsoft, and Google, and central visibility for better, faster detection and response. With 7,000 employees across 65 countries, Trend Micro enables organisations to simplify and secure their connected world. www.TrendMicro.com.au

Media Contact:
Meshal Malik
meshal.malik@archetype.co