The number of ransomware groups rockets as new, smaller players emerge
October 10, 2025 – Published on ITPro.
The number of active ransomware groups has reached a record high, with new, smaller groups sliding under the radar.
In its latest quarterly Ransomware & Cyber Threat Report, GuidePoint’s Security Research & Intelligence Team (GRIT) said they’d seen a 57% increase in the number of ransomware groups, rising from 49 in the third quarter of 2024 to an all-time high of 77 now.
The number of victims, though, has remained relatively steady, stabilizing at around 1,500-1,600 per quarter since the last quarter of last year.
More than half of victims this quarter – 56% – were based in the US. No other country came anywhere close, with Germany second at 5% and the UK third at 4%.
The most-hit industries were manufacturing, technology, and the legal sector, with 252 publicly claimed manufacturing attacks during the second quarter, up 26% quarter-over-quarter.
“Ransomware activity has settled into a new normal, averaging 1,500 to 1,600 victims per quarter since late 2024,” said Nick Hyatt, senior threat intelligence analyst at GuidePoint Security.
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