Proofpoint Report Finds Ransomware Defense Confidence Gap - Channel Insider
Nearly 45% of organizations lack confidence in their ransomware defenses despite increased adoption of protective measures, according to Proofpoint's new 2027 Ransomware Report.
The 2027 Ransomware Report from Proofpoint's MSP business unit, which serves managed service providers and SMBs, surveyed 400 global IT and cybersecurity experts. While organizations are better prepared for ransomware attacks than ever before, a significant confidence gap persists in their protection measures.
The report found ransomware incidence has fallen from 24% to 18% among respondents. Prevention measures are widespread, with 91% protecting their backups and 84% having a disaster recovery plan. Security awareness has increased, with 84% offering training, up 10% from the previous year.
Attack Victims Rarely Pay Ransom
Of those affected by ransomware, only 3% report paying attackers to recover their data. The most common attack vector is email or phishing, cited by 52% of victims.
Companies have noticeably stepped up their ransomware defenses: secure backups, disaster recovery, and security awareness training are now part of the security foundation in many organizations, which is an important step.
AI-Generated Phishing Raises Concerns
The report highlights growing concerns about AI-powered threats, with 84% of respondents saying generative AI has heightened their organization's cyberattack worries. Only 9% believe their staff would reliably recognize an AI-generated phishing attempt.
Attackers are evolving rapidly, using AI to make deception more convincing and combining email with other communication tools in multi-channel attacks. For MSPs, this presents an opportunity to help customers move beyond basic security measures to validate their effectiveness through ongoing assessments and training.
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