Nigeria has recorded the sharpest rise in cyberattacks globally, with African organisations now facing the highest number of threats worldwide, according to Check Point‘s July 2025 Global Threat Intelligence Report.
The report shows that Nigerian organisations endured an average of 6,101 weekly cyberattacks in July, marking a 67% year-on-year increase. This makes Nigeria the most targeted country in Africa and one of the most vulnerable worldwide.
Africa as a whole experienced 3,374 weekly attacks per organisation, a 7% increase from 2024, surpassing all other regions.
Kenya reported 3,468 weekly attacks, Angola 3,731, and South Africa 2,113. The most targeted African sectors were telecommunications, government, and financial services, followed by energy and utilities.
Check Point attributed the surge to rapid digital transformation outpacing cybersecurity investment. “While Africa rapidly rolls out digital strategies, its cybersecurity defences are lagging. Prevention-first strategies, powered by AI, are the only way to stay ahead,” said Lorna Hardie, Regional Director: Africa, Check Point Software Technologies.
Global Cyber Threat Landscape
Globally, organisations averaged 1,947 weekly cyberattacks, a 5% increase year-on-year.
The education sector was the most targeted worldwide with 4,210 attacks per week, followed by government (2,577) and healthcare (2,538). Agriculture saw the steepest rise in incidents at 115%.
The report also highlighted a global increase in ransomware incidents. In July 2025, there were 518 reported ransomware attacks, up 28% year-on-year.
North America accounted for 52% of these incidents, Europe 25%, APAC 11%, Latin America 5%, and Africa 2%. The consumer goods and services sector suffered the most ransomware cases at 12%, followed by construction and engineering (10.2%) and business services (9.5%).
Three ransomware-as-a-service groups dominated the global threat landscape. Qilin was the most active, responsible for 12% of published attacks. Inc.
Ransom accounted for 9%, with a third of its Q2 2025 targets in healthcare. Akira claimed 8% of reported attacks, targeting Windows, Linux, and ESXi systems.
Check Point warned that the combination of high attack volumes and increasingly sophisticated methods signals an urgent need for African nations to strengthen cybersecurity resilience.
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