ESET: 88% of CIS Companies Faced Cyber Threats

ESET has conducted a study on the state of information security in CIS countries. The results showed that 88% of companies have encountered various cyber threats.

Among external threats, spam leads the way: 73% of respondents in a multi-choice survey selected it. Companies in Belarus were most often targeted by spam, with 83% reporting incidents.

Additionally, 64% of enterprises in the CIS suffered from different types of malware. According to researchers, this figure indicates that companies still do not pay enough attention to antivirus protection.

Corporate phishing also poses a significant risk today. According to ESET, 16% of companies in the CIS have been affected by this type of threat. Armenia had the highest rate, with 39% of companies falling victim to targeted phishing attacks.

Another common internal threat is data leaks: 7% of respondents reported intentional leaks, while 23% experienced accidental ones. In Kazakhstan, 49% of those surveyed faced data leaks.

The most popular information security tool among CIS companies is antivirus solutions, noted by 97% of respondents. Additionally, 62% monitor the use and updating of software, 44% control external storage devices, and 12% turn to third-party companies for IT security audits.

To strengthen information security, 55% of companies plan to allocate a budget for purchasing and renewing software. 24% of respondents believe it is necessary to invest in employee training, as the human factor often plays a decisive role—especially in cases of phishing, social engineering, and accidental data leaks.

Notably, more than half of respondents from Uzbekistan (53%) reported that their companies simply do not have a budget for information security. In Azerbaijan, 37% lack such a budget. On average across the CIS, this figure is 32%. This may explain why 9% of surveyed companies consider their information security status unsatisfactory.