German firms report rising cyber threat from foreign intelligence services, study shows
Bitkom said 80% of companies expect more AI-driven attacks as China and Russia remain the main suspected sources.
- On Wednesday, the digital industry association Bitkom released its Wirtschaftsschutz 2026 study, showing that 37% of German companies now suspect foreign intelligence services behind cyberattacks—a figure that has climbed fivefold since 2023.
- Bitkom President Ralf Wintergerst noted the blurring lines between crime and state, saying, "Intelligence agencies make use of criminal structures; conversely, criminals are given free rein as long as they choose their targets in line with political directives."
- Among companies identifying specific sources, 52% traced at least one attack to China and 49% to Russia, while 9% attributed incidents to Iran; all three nations have denied conducting such cyber operations abroad.
- Some 87% of German firms reported data theft, espionage, or sabotage in the past 12 months, with annual damages reaching at least €211 billion, though cybersecurity spending remains unchanged at 18% of IT budgets.
- Defensive confidence has fallen as only 43% of firms feel adequately protected against attacks, while 80% of companies anticipate attackers will increasingly use artificial intelligence, which Wintergerst said is "fundamentally changing the nature of attacks.
21 Articles
21 Articles
More than one in three German companies (37%) have observed at least one cyberattack in the past 12 months that could be attributed to a foreign intelligence service. According to the digital industry association Bitkom, the most common targets are China (52%) and Russia (49%). Iran is also increasingly suspected (9%). The total economic damage resulting from data theft, industrial espionage, and sabotage is estimated at at least €211 billion an…
Industrial espionage, data theft and sabotage cost German companies billions of euros each year. According to a study, attacks by state actors in particular have increased.
According to a survey, the German economy is becoming more and more targeted by state actors in cyber attacks. The attacks cost companies billions a year. Therefore, the perpetrators are mainly located in two countries.
87% of German companies were attacked last year, and Russia has caught up with China
Some 87% of German companies were hit by data theft, espionage, or sabotage in the past twelve months, up from 81% a year earlier, according to the industry association Bitkom, which puts the resulting damage at €289.2bn. What is new in this year’s report is not the trend but the method, because Bitkom has combined […] This story continues at The Next Web
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