‘Ransomware threats more than doubling every year’

Veeam CEO warns of rising ransomware threats in India, emphasizing the need for enhanced data protection and recovery measures.

Ransomware threats are more than doubling every year, both in terms of volume and value of tax and transfer payments, says Anand Eswaran, CEO, Veeam Software, a global leader in data resilience.

“Assuming all things would be breached, one must make sure that one’s data is recovered without any loss as instantly as possible, he said in an interview with The Hindu.

“Our research tells us that three fourth of all companies were breached last year at least once and 80% of them ended up paying the ransom, and despite paying the ransom, 25% never retrieved the data,” he said. 

Stating that companies needed to realise it as an organisational cultural problem, he said it required “everyone in every country to start taking this [data protection] seriously.” “And I think that’s still a journey,” he added.

Mr. Eswaran was in Mumbai to speak at VeeamOn Tour India 2024, a community event for data recovery experts which concluded in Mumbai this week, after a series of events in Bengaluru and Delhi.

According to a recent white paper by the company, which is eyeing a revenue of $2 billion in 2026, India’s crucial role in global digital economy makes it a prime target for ransomware. 

The white paper has been developed in accordance with guidelines from the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (Cert-In) and provides an analysis of the current ransomware landscape.  Cert-In had reported a 53% rise in ransomware incidents in 2022, particularly affecting IT services, finance, manufacturing, and critical infrastructure, disrupting essential services for ransom.