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Rewind India’s 2024 Cybersecurity Crisis: Major Attacks



India faced a surge in cyber-attacks in 2024, with threats like ransomware, phishing, and Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks impacting businesses, banks, and public services. These incidents have sparked calls for stronger data protection laws. Nearly 370 million malware attacks and over one million ransomware cases were reported during the year. Key industries like healthcare, hospitality, and banking were hit the hardest, with Telangana and Tamil Nadu identified as hotspots.

From January to June alone, there were 135,173 phishing attacks related to financial services, such as e-commerce, banking, and payment systems a 175% increase compared to 2023, as per a Kaspersky report. This rise was fueled by the growing use of digital platforms and AI-driven scams.

A summary of the major cyber-attacks that shook India in 2024:

January

  • SPARSH Portal Data Leak: A breach exposed sensitive information of defense personnel from the pension administration portal, with credentials even shared on Telegram.
  • Hathway Data Breach: Hacker 'dawnofdevil' leaked over 200 GB of data, compromising personal details of 41.5 million customers.

February

  • Motilal Oswal Financial Services Attack: The LockBit ransomware group targeted this broking firm, exposing data of over six million clients.
  • Burger Singh Hack: A Pakistani group hacked and altered the fast-food chain’s website.

March

  • Polycab Ransomware Attack: Despite the attack, operations at the wire manufacturer were unaffected.

April

  • boAt Data Breach: Over 7.5 million customers' personal data was leaked on dark web forums.

June

  • BSNL Breach: Sensitive data, including SIM details and security keys, was compromised in a 278 GB breach.

July

  • WazirX Cryptocurrency Theft: Hackers stole $230 million due to vulnerabilities in the exchange’s wallet system.

October

  • Star Health Insurance Breach: Over 31 million customers’ sensitive data, including medical records, was leaked via Telegram bots.

Additional Incidents

  • Telangana Police Hawk Eye App Breach: Data of 200,000 citizens was exposed, leading to an arrest.
  • Tamil Nadu Facial Recognition Portal Breach: Hackers used stolen credentials but failed to compromise the core system.
  • NDMA Data Leak: Details of 93,000 volunteers were sold on the dark web.
  • Hyundai Motor India Breach: Customer data was leaked due to web link vulnerabilities.
  • Uttar Pradesh Marriage Scheme Fraud: Hackers stole over ₹1 crore by exploiting the government website.
  • Transparent Tribe Espionage: A phishing campaign targeted India's defense sector.
  • Energy Sector Attacks: Government and energy agencies suffered cyber-espionage, with significant data stolen.
  • Uttarakhand Government Websites Hacked: Over 90 sites were taken down, disrupting services.
  • HDFC Life Insurance Breach: Customer data was stolen, prompting immediate action.

 

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