This time of the summer sees a slew of cyber security reports being released as organisations try to take stock of the big trends of the year.

Some trends dominate the following reports; most note an explosive growth in ransomware. Ransomware,malware that encrypts files on a victim's device and forces them to pay a ransom to the attacker before they can access them, is now apparently the most profitable malware type in history.

 

1. Midyear Cybersecurity Report (Cisco)

Looking at trends from the first half of 2016, this Cisco report focuses on trends including the growth of ransomware, malvertising and vulnerabilities related to enhanced encryption. The report was released on 26 July.

Click here to access the report.

 

 2. 1H 2016 Shadow Data Threat Report (Blue Coat)

This report focuses on the threat of shadow IT, with the headline statistic that organisations are running 20 times more cloud apps than they estimate, with most using an average of 841 across their extended networks.

This report was released on 28 July.

Click here to access the report.

 

3. PandaLabs Report Q2 2016 (Panda Security)

PandaLabs detected 18 million new malware samples in the last three months, with an average of 200,000 threats neutralized daily. The main interest is the report’s deep dives into case studies of attacks.

It was published on 28 July.

Click here to access the report.

 

4. Cybersecurity Education Efforts Yielding Results (Palo Alto Networks)

Focusing on a more positive theme than the huge growth in threats, this report from Palo Alto networks, based on a survey, shows how education efforts are boosting awareness of cyber issues.

61 percent of respondents would speak with IT before introducing new devices onto a network or adding business applications and tools onto the network. It was published on 19 July.

Click here to access the report.