Leading web hosting company Hostinger says 2023 turned out to be a banner year for malware, as its Monarx-powered scanner service successfully identified and cleaned nearly 500 million threats during the year, which is equivalent to 250 instances per client.
While this figure is half of what it was in 2022, it is largely due to the company's successful efforts to combat Phoenix, a loader known for delivering other malware to systems.
When you remove Phoenix's influence from the equation, there was an obvious and significant increase in the number of unique pieces of malware throughout 2023, an increase that Hostinger expects to continue this year.
Incoming DDoS attacks
Hostinger noted that malicious activities peaked during sales periods, when there are more people online and potentially less cautious about security. The company's malware scanner was particularly active during major sales in November and December, with minor spikes seen in May and August.
The company also says its infrastructure faced more than 185,000 DDoS attacks, averaging 500 per day. The company's advanced traffic filter successfully thwarted most of these, reducing the use of remotely activated black holes by up to 95% and improving uptime of services and clients.
The company also reports that 2023 saw a significant increase in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) by cybercriminals, which should surprise no one.
Emerging threats targeting small businesses and mom-and-pop shops were also identified, and ransomware, which used to primarily target large, creditworthy businesses, is increasingly targeting small businesses.
Cryptocurrency miners are also stepping up, Hostinger says, particularly as bitcoin prices fall and traditional mining declines, making web server mining lucrative.
