Palo Alto Networks, the global cybersecurity leader, released the Unit 42 Network Threat Trends Research Report Vol.2. The report highlights the current trends in malware while providing a detailed analysis of the most common types of malware and their distribution methods.

This report presents a comprehensive analysis of global telemetry data collected from Palo Alto Networks Next-Generation Firewall (NGFW), Cortex Data Lake, Advanced URL Filtering, and Advanced Wildfire.

“Threat actors are constantly evolving their techniques, employing evasion tools and camouflage methods to bypass detection. Organisations must guard against malware designed to exploit older vulnerabilities while proactively staying ahead of sophisticated new attacks,” says Anil Valluri, Regional Vice President, India & SAARC at Palo Alto Networks.

Key findings from the report include:

● Exploitation of vulnerabilities has increased by 55%, compared to 2021.

● Linux malware is on the rise, targeting cloud workload devices; an estimated

90% of public cloud instances run on Linux. The most common types of threats against Linux systems are: botnets (47%), coinminers (21%) and backdoors (11%).

● PDFs are the most popular file type for delivering malware as email attachments- 66.6% of all attachments.

● ChatGPT scams: Unit 42 saw a 910% increase in monthly registrations for domains, both benign and malicious, related to ChatGPT.

● Cryptominer traffic doubled in 2022.

● Newly Registered Domains: Threat actors were found more likely to target people visiting adult websites (20.2%) and financial services (13.9%) sites with newly registered domains (NRDs).

● Malware aimed at industries using OT technology is increasing: The average number of malware attacks experienced per organisation in the manufacturing, utilities and energy industry increased by 238% (between 2021 and 2022).

"As millions of people use ChatGPT, it's unsurprising that we see ChatGPT-related scams, which have exploded over the past year, as cybercriminals take advantage of the hype around AI. But, the trusty email PDF is still the most common way cybercriminals deliver malware," says Sean Duca, VP and Regional Chief Security Officer at Palo Alto Networks.