West coast is the indeed the best coast, at least when it comes to cyber-attacks, as a new study found that California is the most frequently targeted state across the US.
Cybersecurity hasn’t been having a great year so far. With high-profile security breaches hitting headlines on a regular basis and individual protection lacking in some major areas, cyber-attacks have become extremely commonplace for businesses and everyday users alike.
Now, it appears there are specific areas of the country that are hit worse than others, with the new study revealing the most cyber-attacked states in the US.
Most Cyberattacked US States
According to the report from RudderStack, California is the most cyber-attacked state in the US, accounting for more than 67,000 victims who lost a total of $1.2 billion in 2021. That’s an average of more than $18,000 per victim, an amount that few residents of the Golden State would be happy with paying to hackers.
Here’s the rest of the top 10 most cyberattacked states according to the report:
As for why California has the most victims and the most financial loss from cyberattacks, there’s a pretty obvious reason when you understand just how big California really is.
“California is the most cyber-attacked state in the US due to its high population, large public sector presence and tech-savvy citizens.” – Eric Dodds, Head of Product Marketing at RudderStack
For one, California has nearly double the population of Florida, the number two state on the list, with almost 40 million residents compared to Florida’s 20 million. Subsequently, these numbers are obviously going to be a bit higher.
Beyond that, California is home to dozens of the world’s most prolific tech companies, accounting for far more online activity that may be targeted by hackers. All that to say, it’s easy to see why California is at the top of this list.
How to Protect Your Business from Cyber-Attacks
Whether or not you live in California shouldn’t matter; protecting your business from cyber-attacks should be your biggest priority in 2023, whether you’re a large enterprise or a small startup. Fortunately, the researchers behind the report provided some insightful help that can keep you safe from cyber-attacks like these.
“To protect themselves, individuals should ensure that they use up-to-date software on all their devices and strong passwords with at least eight characters, including a combination of upper and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols. It is also important that people regularly back up important files, so they can be restored in case of an attack.” – Eric Dodds, Head of Product Marketing at RudderStack
In many cases, it really is as simple as keeping your software up to date and following password best practices. Still, that’s no easy feat in the modern era, which is why we recommend checking out services like password managers and antivirus software to shore up your security in the new year.
