Among Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) Users, 56% Experienced an Increase in the Volume of Attacks and 67% Were Hit by Ransomware

OXFORD, U.K. — November 29, 2022 —

Sophos, a global leader in innovating and delivering cybersecurity as a service, today published findings of a new survey, “The Reality of SMB Cloud Security in 2022.” The survey found that, among Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) users, 56% experienced an increase in the volume of attacks on their organization when compared to the previous year, and 67% were hit by ransomware. In addition, 59% experienced an increase in complexity of attacks.

For many of these users, a lack of visibility into their infrastructure, unpatched vulnerabilities and resource misconfigurations make them susceptible to various types of attacks, including ransomware. Of those surveyed, only 37% track and detect resource misconfigurations and only 43% routinely scan IaaS resources for software vulnerabilities. What’s more, 65% of cloud users reported not having visibility of all resources and their configurations, and only 33% said their organization has the resources to continuously detect, investigate and remove threats in their IaaS infrastructure.

"It is imperative that security is prioritized as organizations continue to adopt cloud services. This includes implementing traditional threat-based protections, as well as risk-based mitigations. Unpatched vulnerabilities and misconfigured resources are both preventable mistakes and avoidable risks that make life easier for attackers. Most attackers are not unstoppable criminal masterminds, but rather opportunistic cyberthugs looking for an easy payday," said John Shier, senior security advisor, Sophos. “However, the survey also found that more advanced IaaS users are twice as likely to report a decrease in attack impact than beginners, suggesting the appropriate defense mechanisms can go a long way in deterring threat actors. For users who need help, we recommend security services that have the 24/7 experts who can detect and quickly respond to active attacks.”

To learn more about The Reality of SMB Cloud Security in 2022, read the full report on Sophos.com.

The Reality of SMB Cloud Security in 2022 survey polled 4,984 IT professionals in small and mid-sized organizations.

About Sophos

Sophos is a global leader and innovator of advanced security solutions for defeating cyberattacks. The company acquired Secureworks in February 2025, bringing together two pioneers that have redefined the cybersecurity industry with their innovative, native AI-optimized services, technologies and products. Sophos is now the largest pure-play Managed Detection and Response (MDR) provider, supporting more than 28,000 organizations. In addition to MDR and other services, Sophos’ complete portfolio includes industry-leading endpoint, network, email, and cloud security that interoperate and adapt to defend through the Sophos Central platform. Secureworks provides the innovative, market-leading Taegis XDR/MDR, identity threat detection and response (ITDR), next-gen SIEM capabilities, managed risk, and a comprehensive set of advisory services. Sophos sells all these solutions through reseller partners, Managed Service Providers (MSPs) and Managed Security Service Providers (MSSPs) worldwide, defending more than 600,000 organizations worldwide from phishing, ransomware, data theft, other every day and state-sponsored cybercrimes. The solutions are powered by historical and real-time threat intelligence from Sophos X-Ops and the newly added Counter Threat Unit (CTU). Sophos is headquartered in Oxford, U.K. More information is available at www.sophos.com.