Ransomware Remains Canada's Top Cyber Threat as the Average Breach Now Costs Nearly 7 Million Dollars

The picture of cybersecurity in Canada in 2026 is a sobering one. Organisations across the country are grappling with an ever more hostile digital environment, in which criminal groups have become more organised, more sophisticated and more financially motivated than ever before. Ransomware continues to sit at the very top of the threat landscape, casting a long shadow over businesses of every size.

The rising cost of a breach

One of the most alarming trends is the steadily climbing cost of a data breach. According to figures cited from IBM, the average cost of a breach in Canada reached 6.98 million Canadian dollars in 2025, representing a jump of 10.4 percent from the previous figure of 6.32 million dollars. This upward trajectory places a particularly heavy burden on smaller organisations with limited resources to absorb such losses.

The financial pain varies considerably by sector. Breaches in the financial industry proved the most expensive, averaging 9.97 million dollars, followed closely by the industrial sector at 8.39 million dollars. Incidents that began with phishing were especially costly, reaching an average of 7.91 million dollars, a striking increase of 24 percent that underscores the enduring danger posed by deceptive social engineering tactics.

Interestingly, the data also reveals the tangible value of modern defences. Organisations that had deployed security artificial intelligence and automation faced average costs of just 5.19 million dollars, compared with a far higher 8.53 million dollars for those without such tools. That gap of 3.34 million dollars illustrates how significantly the right technology can mitigate the financial damage of an attack.

Ransomware remains the top threat

Ransomware continues to be the single greatest danger facing Canadian organisations. Research from the Canadian Internet Registration Authority found that 43 percent of Canadian organisations were attacked in the past twelve months, with 24 percent specifically hit by ransomware. Alarmingly, a full 74 percent of those ransomware victims ended up paying the demands issued by their attackers.

The official assessment from the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security paints a similar picture of relentless growth. It notes an average year over year increase of 26 percent in Canadian ransomware incidents between 2021 and 2024. Compounding the problem, the average ransom paid has surged by 150 percent over just two years, making these attacks an increasingly lucrative enterprise for criminals.

The Cyber Centre offers insight into who is behind these campaigns. It assesses that the threat actors targeting Canadian organisations are almost certainly opportunistic and financially motivated, with their core membership most likely being Russian speaking and operating out of the Commonwealth of Independent States. Among the most prominent groups active against Canada are Akira, Play and Medusa.

Double extortion and crime as a service

The tactics employed by these criminals have grown notably more ruthless. Ransomware operators now routinely steal or exfiltrate sensitive data before encrypting a victim's systems, creating so called double extortion scenarios. In these situations, victims are pressured not only to pay for the recovery of their files but also to prevent the public release of their confidential information, doubling the leverage held by attackers.

Fuelling this surge is the rise of the Cybercrime as a Service model. Under this arrangement, highly skilled threat actors develop and commercialise exploit kits, data theft tools and ransomware, which they then sell or lease to less technically capable criminals. This effectively lowers the barrier to entry, allowing a far wider pool of bad actors to launch sophisticated attacks with minimal expertise.

The artificial intelligence factor

Artificial intelligence has emerged as a powerful new weapon in the attacker's arsenal. Studies indicate that AI driven phishing campaigns are up to three times more effective than traditional ones, while there has been a staggering 195 percent global growth in AI driven forgeries. With 28 percent of breaches beginning with phishing or social engineering, this technological escalation is deeply concerning for defenders across the country.

National response and new legislation

Canada is responding to these threats with significant investment and new laws. National recovery spending on cybersecurity incidents reached 1.2 billion dollars in 2023, double the figure recorded in 2021, while spending on prevention and detection climbed to 11.0 billion dollars. The Cyber Centre also issued 336 pre-ransomware notifications in 2024 and 2025, generating estimated economic savings of up to 18 million dollars.

On the legislative front, a major milestone was reached when Bill C-8 received Royal Assent on the 15th of June 2026, strengthening the country's legal framework for protecting critical systems. Taken together, the rising costs, the relentless ransomware threat and the growing role of artificial intelligence make it clear that vigilance and continued investment will be essential for Canadian organisations in the years ahead.