A recent forecast by QBE Canada warns that the number of publicly named ransomware victims will jump from 5,010 in 2024 to more than 7,000 by the end of 2026. This surge represents a fivefold increase compared to 2020, a clear sign that ransomware is not slowing down but accelerating at a troubling pace.
As attackers adopt more advanced tools, including cloud-based platforms and generative AI, the threat landscape is expanding rapidly. The QBE report notes that the widespread use of cloud and AI systems is creating new vulnerabilities for cybercriminals to exploit.
In 2024, deepfake-enabled attacks accounted for nearly 10 percent of all successful cyber intrusions, with financial damages ranging from 250,000 dollars to 20 million dollars per incident. The rise of AI-powered schemes is adding complexity and risk across every industry.
Businesses moving to cloud infrastructure and AI-powered tools are gaining efficiency, but they are also inheriting new risks. These technologies offer cybercriminals scalable and automated pathways to launch attacks.
As organizations rely on outsourced providers, managed services, or multiple contractors, each connection adds a potential weak point. The QBE report stresses that any security gap in a partner network can expose an entire company to ransomware.
While businesses are improving identity controls, encrypting data, and investing in monitoring tools, these defenses still leave gaps. In modern cyberattacks, especially those powered by automation, ransomware can lock systems or exfiltrate data before detection tools even trigger an alert.
The detect and respond model assumes defenders will identify threats fast enough to stop damage. But attackers now operate at machine speed. By the time a threat is detected, data may already be encrypted, stolen, or corrupted.
Businesses cannot rely on response time alone. Prevention must be built into the endpoint itself. The focus must shift from asking how quickly a threat can be detected to ensuring malicious code cannot execute in the first place.
This is where AppGuard provides a meaningful advantage.
AppGuard is not a traditional antivirus or EDR tool. It is a proven endpoint protection solution with a decade of real-world success, now available for commercial use.
AppGuard uses isolation and containment to block malicious activity before it begins. Even if malware reaches a device, AppGuard prevents it from launching harmful actions. It does not wait to detect threats; it stops them from executing entirely.
This makes AppGuard especially powerful for organizations operating in the cloud, leveraging AI tools, or working with multiple third party vendors. When prevention is engineered directly into the endpoint, ransomware and exploit attempts lose their ability to spread or cause damage.
Too many organizations are still depending on tools that only react after malware tries to execute. That is a dangerous and expensive game to play, especially with a projected 40 percent rise in ransomware attacks by 2026.
Isolation and containment is the smarter path forward.
If you are a business owner or decision maker, talk with us at CHIPS about how AppGuard can prevent this type of incident. AppGuard delivers true isolation and containment so ransomware cannot detonate, spread, or inflict harm.
Move your business from detect and respond to isolation and containment.
Stop playing the crazy game. Come over to the AppGuard way of doing things.
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