Trend Micro released the findings of its 2023 Annual Cybersecurity Report yesterday, revealing that it had prevented more than 161 billion attacks globally.

As Africa remains a prime target for cyber criminals, Morocco suffered over 52 million threats last year alone.

These included over 40 million email threats and over 1.6 million malicious URL victim attacks, which cyber security firm Trend Micro says were successfully detected.

In addition, Trend Micro claims to have identified and prevented over 3.7 million malware infections.

Trend Micro released the findings of its 2023 Annual Cybersecurity Report yesterday, revealing that it had prevented more than 161 billion attacks globally, representing a significant 10% annual increase over the previous year's data.

Furthermore, the survey found a 349% year-over-year increase in email malware detection globally. In contrast, detections of fraudulent and phishing URLs declined by 27% year on year while Trend's Attack Surface Danger Management detected roughly 83 billion access attempts to cloud apps, posing the largest danger.

According to the survey, attackers are using increasingly sophisticated strategies to target fewer victims, potentially resulting in greater financial gains.

This comes at a time when Africa's cybersecurity landscape is experiencing challenges such as limited resources, insufficient cyber knowledge, and economic constraints, according to research from KnowBe4, another security firm.

However, KnowBe4 said the continent's cyber security preparation efforts are now increasing.

Assad Arabi, Trend Micro's MD for Africa and venture markets, commented: "In the realm of cybersecurity, a breach isn't always a catastrophe in itself; rather, it's often our response that can escalate it into a major challenge or crisis.

“We help organisations stay ahead of cyber threats by adopting the latest solutions, including the seamless integration of AI. Our proactive approach allows us to anticipate and address potential breaches before they escalate.”

Trend Micro attended the recent GITEX Africa trade show in Morocco as part of its ongoing efforts to raise cybersecurity awareness.

The company said its Cybersecurity Report for 2023, titled "Calibrating Expansion", offers a strong reminder that companies must take a proactive approach to managing risks across the whole attack surface in today's dynamic cybersecurity world.