Indiana saw 70% more than U.S. average of cybercrime in the last year | WIBQ The Talk Station | #cybercrime | #infosec

FARMERSBURG, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV)— The data collection experts at SOAX have released a study showing Indiana as the #14th lowest state at risk for cybercrime.

The experts at SOAX analyzed BLS and Glassdoor data to evaluate the risk across the states across three categories. Those three categories are cybercrime victims per 100,000 members of the population, data breaches per 100,000, and data protection law scores. Each state was then scored out of 100 to determine where it ranked nationally in data security. The national average came in at a law score of three, 201.4 cybercrime victims, and .25 data breaches.

Over the last year, SOAX found that Indiana had 341.75 cybercrime victims per 100,000 members of the state’s population, which is 69.69% higher than the national average. Indiana did, however did end up 42.5 % safer than the national average when it comes to data breaches. Indiana also scored high on data protection law, scoring a 6. This indicates the Hoosier state’s laws are more effective at protecting consumers’ personal information.

The state that saw the highest risk level was Alaska, largely due to the 914.7 cybercrime victims per 100,000 residents. That level is 354% higher than the national average. Alaska also has a law score of one, and an amount of data breaches slightly higher than average. The state with the least amount of risk of cybercrime was Nebraska. Nebraska fell well below the national average on both metrics and had the maximum law score of 6.

Each of Indiana’s neighboring states ended up in several different points on the list. Kentucky scored the highest, landing at number #2, Michigan coming in at #29, Ohio at #35, and Illinois being the lowest on the list, being only seven away from Alaska.

“It’s important to know the risk level in Indiana, as awareness is the first step towards defense,” said Stepan Solovev, CEO & Co-founder of SOAX. “If you’re in a vulnerable area, ensure you’re protecting your personal information: strengthen your passwords and enable multi-factor authentication, keep your security software updated, and educate yourself and those around you about the warning signs of data breaches and phishing.”