G DATA BANKGUARD AVERTS OVER 100 MILLION EUROS WORTH OF LOSSES

73 percent of Internet users carry out their financial transactions online (source: Bitkom). In 2014, the German Federal Criminal Police Office recorded 6,984 cases of phishing related to online banking – an increase of 70.5 percent (2013: 4,096 cases). G DATA SecurityLabs’ Malware Report for the first half of 2015 also observes a growing number of thwarted attacks in this field. Since 2011, the G DATA BankGuard technology, integrated into all G DATA security solutions, has averted potential losses worth over 100 million euros for online banking and shopping customers. For 2015, the experts are expecting an increase in the number of attacks by banking Trojans. The G DATA Malware Report is available online.

In the first half of 2015 alone, the G DATA security experts discovered 3,045,722 new malware types – equivalent to an average of twelve new malware programs per minute. Compared with the first half of 2014, this represents a 64.8 percent hike.

Banking Trojans targeting German bank customers

“The massive attack waves by the banking Trojan Swatbanker were not the only reason for the significantly higher number of thwarted attacks during the first half of 2015,“ explains Ralf Benzmüller, head of G DATA SecurityLabs. “For the year 2015 as a whole, we are expecting attacks by banking Trojans to increase for the first time since 2012.“

G DATA SecurityLabs has taken a close look at the large-scale campaign waged by the Swatbanker banking Trojan. The cyber criminals behind Swatbanker have launched a targeted offensive against banking customers in Germany, Austria and Poland. The attacks are regularly repeated in order to lure users into the trap. The experts even suggest the attacks could have infected the computers of the German Parliament.

G DATA BankGuard protects online banking customers

Since April 2011, G DATA customers are reliably protected by the BankGuard technology. Every year, BankGuard fends off tens of thousands of attempted attacks. Up to the end of the first half of 2015, a total of 182,457 attacks were foiled. Based on statistical projection, G DATA BankGuard has thus far prevented losses worth over 100 million euros.