Israeli Education System One of Most Cyber-Targeted in World

Jerusalem, 23 August, 2021 (TPS) -- Israel’s educational system faces one of the highest volumes of cyber-attacks on its networks, according to a study by Check Point Research (CPR).

In July 2021, organizations in the education and research sector in India experienced the highest volume of attacks with an average of 5,196 attacks per week per organization, a 22% increase from the first half of 2021.

Italy ranks second, with an average of 5,016 attacks weekly per organization, a 70% increase.

Israel is third in the world, with 4,011 attacks weekly, a 51% increase. Australia is fourth, with 3,934 attacks weekly, a 17% increase.

In more than half of the countries researched, education and research is the most attacked sector, and in 94% of them, it is in the top three most attacked sectors.

CPR explained that in 2020, the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic forced organizations to pivot suddenly to a mostly remote workforce. Within a matter of weeks, organizations that had no existing telework programs needed to adapt and update their infrastructure so that their employees, partners and users could work from home.

In particular, organizations in the education and research sector are finding themselves engaged in a cyber security battle like never before. This includes schools, universities and research facilities.

In July 2021, education and research was the sector that experienced the highest volume of attacks, with an average of 1,739 attacks per organization weekly. This was a 29% increase from the first half of 2021.

The only sector which made a higher change from the first half of 2021 was Leisure, at 51%, something to expect during the summer months, CPR noted.