Interpol's annual cybercrime assessment reports that ransomware payment rates have fallen to record lows, crediting law enforcement takedowns, improved backups and hardening victim resolve.
Fewer than one in four victim organizations now pays, down from roughly half three years ago. Total extorted value declined even as attack volumes remained high, squeezing the economics of the ransomware ecosystem.
The report attributes the shift to recovered decryption keys from takedowns, cyber insurance policies that mandate resilience controls, and growing recognition that payment neither guarantees recovery nor prevents leaks.
However, the assessment warns of displacement effects: groups are pivoting to pure data-extortion, attacks on data-rich third parties, and fraud schemes with lower operational costs.
