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As of February 2025, the United States ranked first by the average cost of a data breach, million U.S. dollars. The average cost of data breaches in the Middle East was **** million U.S. dollars. Benelux followed in the ranking, with **** million U.S. dollars. In the measured period, the global average data breach cost was **** million U.S. dollars.

Phishing scams in the U.S.

Breached data often ends up in the hands of threat actors who use it for malicious purposes, including online scams. Phishing continues to be a major threat in North America, particularly on smartphones. In the second quarter of 2023, the region recorded the highest number of phishing and malicious attack attempts globally. The United States was particularly affected, with ** percent of U.S. citizens reporting being targeted by scam texts, e-mails, and calls on a daily basis.

Additionally, phishing and spoofing were the most common types of cybercrime, impacting *** thousand individuals in 2023. These attacks led to financial losses, with U.S. victims reporting nearly ** billion U.S. dollars in damages throughout the year.

U.S. users and data privacy

Despite only ** percent of internet users in the United States being highly knowledgeable about data privacy and cybersecurity, a significant portion of users demonstrated caution and awareness in protecting their information. In fact, over half of surveyed U.S. users reported being somewhat confident in knowing the right steps to take in the event of a cyberattack. 

Furthermore, ** percent of U.S. users actively decline cookies on websites, reflecting their increasing concern for data protection. Many respondents also take additional steps to safeguard their digital privacy, such as limiting or avoiding clicking on ads as well as not answering phone calls due to cybersecurity risks.