58% of Retailers Pay Ransom as Cyber Threats Intensify

KUALA LUMPUR, November 5, 2025 – More than half (58%) of retailers hit by ransomware ended up paying the ransom, according to Sophos’ State of Ransomware in Retail 2025 report. The study found that 46% of incidents stemmed from unknown security gaps, underscoring visibility and preparedness challenges across the retail sector. Median ransom demands doubled to US$2 million, while average payments rose 5% to US$1 million.

Cyber Threats

Sophos identified Akira, Cl0p, Qilin, PLAY, and Lynx as the most active threat groups targeting retailers. Despite rising ransom demands, data encryption rates have fallen to a five-year low of 48%, suggesting stronger early detection and response capabilities. However, backup recovery rates have declined to 62%, their lowest in four years.

Sophos’ Global Field CISO Chester Wisniewski urged retailers to strengthen visibility, patching, and Managed Detection and Response capabilities to curb future attacks and recover faster from breaches.

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