Cybercrime number registers boost in China and Hong Kong

According to a recent PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Global State of Information Security survey, the average number of detected security incidents in the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong surged 517% to hit 1,245 over the last 12 months, compared with the average of 241 recorded in 2014.

The average financial loss caused by cybercrimes in the region rose 10% year on year to USD 2.63 million, compared with a 5% decline globally. Specifically, hackers targeted customer data, internal records and intellectual property. Survey participants report a 64% rise in security incidents that compromised customer records, much steeper than the global average increase of 35%.

Many threats came from inside. Exactly half of all detected security incidents were caused by current or former employees, the survey showed. Companies have been reacting to the rise in cybercrime by investing more in security. The survey shows 16% more funds were being invested into information security budgets in 2015 than a year ago. Security spending in the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong averaged 7.9 million U.S. dollars, surpassing the global average of USD 5.1 million.