Australian organisations faced an average of 2,117 cyber attacks a week in October, 39 percent more than a year earlier, according to new figures from Check Point Research. The rise came even as global attack volumes eased from September, and it coincided with a record month for ransomware claims worldwide.

The figures, published on 11 November and reported in Australia on 12 November, paint a mixed picture. Attacks are down from their September peak, but they remain about a third higher than a year ago, and ransomware groups publicly claimed more victims in a single month than ever before.

Ransomware claims hit a record high

Ransomware extortion groups publicly claimed 1,063 victims in October, the highest monthly figure in Check Point's data and 35 percent more than in October 2025. The numbers come from the gangs' own public leak sites, so they count claimed victims rather than confirmed breaches, but they are the clearest public measure of how active the ransomware scene has become.

Three groups dominated the month. The Gentlemen was linked to 13 percent of published attacks, Qilin was close behind with 12 percent, and a newer group called n0n moved into third place with 8 percent, up from just 2 percent in September. Check Point describes n0n as a data theft and extortion operation that relies heavily on AI-assisted tools.

North America was the most affected region, accounting for 48 percent of reported ransomware incidents, followed by Europe at 22 percent and Asia-Pacific at 18 percent. The United States alone accounted for 44.3 percent of reported victims, well ahead of Germany at 5.2 percent and Canada at 4.0 percent.

Australia up 39 percent as global volumes ease

Globally, organisations experienced an average of 2,550 cyber attacks a week in October, down 9 percent from September but still up 32 percent year on year. Africa recorded the highest regional volume at 3,834 weekly attacks per organisation, followed by Latin America at 3,483 and Asia-Pacific at 3,436. Europe saw the sharpest growth, up 39 percent on a year earlier, the same rate of increase reported for Australia.

Education remained the most targeted sector worldwide, averaging 5,934 weekly attacks per organisation, a 33 percent year-on-year increase. All 23 sectors tracked by Check Point saw double-digit growth compared with last year.

There was some better news on phishing. Malicious emails fell to one in 128, or 0.78 percent, compared with one in 91, or 1.10 percent, in September. But the relief is limited: attack volumes overall remain far above last year's levels.

AI tools are creating a new data leak risk

The report also warns about the way staff use generative AI tools at work. In October, 2.9 percent of enterprise AI prompts carried a high risk of leaking sensitive data, and the problem touched 90 percent of organisations that regularly use such tools. Sensitive information typed into a chatbot can end up stored or processed outside the organisation's control, and attackers are increasingly exploiting that.

Omer Dembinsky, Data Research Manager at Check Point Research, said the lower monthly figure should not be mistaken for lower risk. Attacks are still running about a third above where they were a year ago, he said, and the record ransomware numbers show that criminal groups are finding new ways to scale.

For Australian organisations, the message is straightforward: patching, phishing defences and controls on how staff use AI tools all need to keep pace with an attack rate that is 39 percent higher than it was twelve months ago.

Sources: Check Point Research and IT Brief Australia.