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A new malware strain was discovered every 4.2 seconds in Q1 2017
G DATA security experts publish malware statistics for 2016 and the first quarter of 2017
In 2016, G DATA experts counted 6,834,443 new digital malware strains. This represents an increase of 32.9 percent compared to 2015. The trend continued in Q1 2017, with 1,852,945 new malware strains. This means that, for this period, the G DATA analysts discover a new malware strain every 4.2 seconds. This value is 72.6 percent higher than in Q1 2016. G DATA security experts forecast a new negative record of 7.41 million new malware instances by the end of the year.
“Ransomware accounted for much of the damage, although the proportion of this malware among the overall instances is quite small,” explains Ralf Benzmüller, Executive Speaker G DATA SecurityLabs. “It’s very different with adware. This is the most prolific malware category, but it’s hardly ever noticed.”
Ransomware increases in 2017
In Q1 2017 alone, the volume of ransomware already reached the level seen in the second half of 2016. Despite the small share of total malware, Ransomware like Petya, Locky or Spora caused a lot of trouble. Adware increased again this year. It had a share of 4.9 percent in 2016, but this rose to 13.9 percent in Q1 2017.
More information on the statistics and the dominant malware categories is available in the G DATA Security Blog:"Malware Trends 2017".
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