Investing.com -- Radware Ltd (NASDAQ:RDWR), a provider of application security and delivery solutions, has unveiled its 2025 Global Threat Analysis Report, detailing a significant escalation in cyber threats worldwide.
The report is based on data from network and application attack activity in 2024, sourced from Radware's cloud services, managed services, and threat intelligence research, as well as information from the messaging platform Telegram.
Key findings from the report indicate a 37% increase in the average duration of network DDoS attacks over the previous year, with North America facing the brunt of web application and API attacks, accounting for 66% of the total.
The finance and transportation sectors saw a nearly 400% year-over-year growth in DDoS attack volume. Furthermore, hacktivist claims rose by 20% globally, with governments being the most frequent targets.
The report links the increase in Layer 7 (L7) Web DDoS attacks to hacktivist groups, which are motivated by geopolitical tensions and have access to increasingly sophisticated tools. These attacks surged by 550% compared to 2023, with the EMEA region being the primary target.
Network-layer DDoS attacks also grew in volume, frequency, and duration, more than doubling since 2022. The average mitigated attack volume rose by 120% compared to the previous year. Europe faced the highest proportion of network DDoS activity, followed by North America.
The telecommunications industry bore 43% of the global network DDoS attack volume, with finance following at 30%. The financial sector experienced the steepest growth in attack volume per organization, increasing by 393% year-over-year.
Hacktivist campaigns intensified, with Ukraine and Israel being the most targeted nations. Government institutions were the top hacktivist targets, followed by business services, finance, and transportation. The most prolific threat actor was a pro-Russian hacker, claiming 4,767 DDoS attacks.
Web applications and APIs have become prime targets for exploitation, with attacks climbing by 41% compared to 2023. Vulnerability exploitation remained the most prominent attack type.
Pascal Geenens, director of threat intelligence at Radware, emphasized the need for dynamic defense strategies, stating, "The escalations in the threat landscape have significant implications for every sector... Organizations are operating in a dynamic environment that demands equally dynamic defense strategies."
