Increasing cyberattacks on the manufacturing sector

The manufacturing industry is now the most affected sector globally by ransomware, with attacks increasing by 56 percent year-on-year in 2025, surpassing every other sector with 1466 attacks in 2025. In terms of global ransomware attacks on the manufacturing industry, the US topped the list with 713 incidents, followed by India (201), Germany (79), the UK (65) and Canada (62), highlighting widespread exposure in both established and emerging economies.

Attacks on the supply chain have almost doubled, rising from 154 incidents in 2024 to 297 in 2025, allowing attackers to indirectly penetrate large manufacturing companies via smaller suppliers and service providers.

Cyber criminals are no longer attacking the manufacturing industry at random, they are doing so in a targeted manner. Outdated OT systems, unpatched vulnerabilities and highly networked supplier ecosystems have created ideal conditions for attackers. They paralyze production lines, extort millions in ransom money and trigger cross-border operational consequences. The report shows a clear shift away from smash-and-grab incidents towards multi-stage attacks that combine ransomware, data theft and pure extortion tactics, with AI-powered phishing and credential theft shortening the time to impact.

At the same time, "ransomware-as-a-service" has virtually industrialized cybercrime. The processes enable affiliates to rapidly scale attacks, localize campaigns and repeatedly exploit the same vulnerabilities in global manufacturing networks.

Daniel Dreier, Area Manager DACH at Cyberint, a Check Point company © Check Point

Daniel Dreier, Area Manager DACH at Cyberint, a Check Point company, explains: "To reduce cyber risks, manufacturers need to rethink their security in both IT and OT environments. They should focus on zero trust architectures, accelerated vulnerability patching, stronger identity and credential management, immutable offline backups and tighter third-party risk controls. In addition, employee awareness remains critical as AI-powered phishing becomes more convincing and targeted."