IBM’s annual Cost of a Data Breach Report shows India’s average data breach cost reached INR 179 million in 2023, a 28% increase since 2020. Detection and escalation costs jumped 45%, indicating a shift towards more complex investigations. Phishing was the most common attack type, followed by stolen credentials. Social engineering was the costliest root cause, costing INR 191 million.
In India, 28% of data breaches resulted in data loss across multiple environments, indicating attackers could compromise multiple environments without detection. The highest associated breach costs were INR 188 million and took the longest to identify and contain (327 days). AI and automation significantly impact the speed of breach identification and containment, with extensive use resulting in a 153-day shorter data breach lifecycle. The biggest cost saver was INR 95 million lower data breach costs for organizations that deployed security AI and automation extensively.
Cyberattacks in India are increasing in cost and pace, necessitating businesses to invest in modern security strategies. Security AI and automation have significantly reduced breach costs, but most organizations still lack deployment. Viswanath Ramaswamy, IBM India & South Asia Vice President, said “The potential for businesses to improve detection and response speeds and reduce breach costs.”