Data Breach Statistics to Know for 2025

No one likes to talk about data breaches—they’re costly, and damaging, and their full impact isn’t clear until it’s too late. From financial losses and lawsuits to a tarnished reputation, the consequences can be devastating.

The good news? Extensive research on breach trends can help businesses assess risks and strengthen defenses. No company is immune—whether you're a global enterprise or a small business, if you have data, you’re a target. Understanding past breaches and their fallout could be the key to protecting your financial institution from becoming the next victim.

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Key Data Breach Statistics

Here are a few key statistics you should be aware of as we head into 2025 - by understanding these trends, you can better assess the risks, strengthen your security measures, and take proactive steps to safeguard your business from potential breaches.  

1. Global Average Cost of a Data Breach

• The global average cost of a data breach in 2024 reached $4.88 million, marking a 10% increase from 2023, the highest increase since the pandemic - IBM
• By 2025, the average cost is projected to rise to $5.00 million, driven by increasing complexity in cybersecurity risks and stricter data protection regulations - VPNRanks

2. Industry-specific costs

• Financial Services: Averaged $6.04 million in 2024, reflecting the high value of financial data - GettrustedIO
• Healthcare: The most expensive sector, with an average cost of 9.77million in 2024,down from 10.93 million in 2023 - Cobalt

3. Small vs. Enterprise Businesses

• Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) faced an average cost of 2.98 million, while organizations with fewer than 500 employees saw costs rise to 3.31 million - VPNRanks
• 60% of small businesses go out of business within six months of a cyberattack - GettrustedIO
  
  

6 Data Breach Statistics, Risks & Numbers for 2023

• Ransomware Attacks: Ransomware attacks have increased by 13% over the past five years, with the average cost per incident estimated at $1.85 million - GetAstra
  
  
• Detection and Containment Time: On average, organizations took 204 days to identify a breach and an additional 73 days to contain it. Companies that managed to discover and contain a breach in under 200 days saved over $1 million compared to those that took longer - Embroker
  
  
• Global Cybercrime Costs: It's projected that cybercrime will cost the world $10.5 trillion annually by 2025, marking a significant increase from $3 trillion in 2015. - CybersecurityVentures
  
  
• Detection and Escalation: Costs rose to $1.63 million, driven by advanced tools and expertise needed for investigations - CertBar
  
  
• Organizations using AI and automation extensively saved an average of $2.22 million in breach costs compared to those without these tools - IBM
  
  
• Breaches involving public cloud environments incurred the highest average cost at $5.17 million - IBM

Need Help With Your Cybersecurity Program?

Accurately measure risk & automate compliance with Rivial Security.

Estimate Cyber Insurance Requirements with Rivial's Risk Assessment 

We get it—breach stats can be scary. But they also hold valuable insights that can help strengthen your cybersecurity program.

By combining historical breach data with our risk assessment software, we’ve helped our clients prioritize their most vulnerable areas through risk quantification—a data-driven approach to cybersecurity. This helps pinpoint common attack methods and high-risk systems, making it easier to prioritize security efforts, allocate resources wisely, and show auditors or stakeholders that the right measures are in place.

The result? Stronger defenses where they matter most, fewer costly incidents, lower cyber insurance premiums, and a more efficient security budget. Want to see how it works? Check out a demo of our platform below!