Israel ranked world’s most geopolitically targeted country in cyberattacks – report

Israel is the world’s most geopolitically targeted country for cyberattacks, according to Radware’s 2026 Global Cyber Threat Report.

The report from Radware, an Israeli cybersecurity and application delivery company, stated that politically motivated cyberattacks against Israeli organizations have become nearly daily occurrences. It was found that distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks rose by 168%, with Radware clients experiencing an average of roughly 25,000 such attacks during 2025. Furthermore, "application-layer" attacks grew by 120% in 2025.

Despite its small size, Israel topped the list with 12.2% of all the world’s politically motivated cyberattacks targeting the country. Another security concern, malicious bot activity, increased by 92% last year.

Ron Meyran, the vice president of Threat Intelligence at Radware, emphasized the rapidly changing cyberattack landscape. “The threat landscape is evolving rapidly,” Meyran said.

“Attackers are now combining automation, artificial intelligence and multi-vector strategies to disrupt operations at scale. Organizations must adopt automated defenses capable of responding in seconds, not minutes.”

The report revealed that the most targeted sectors included financial companies, tech business and e-commerce platforms. While the number of global cyberattacks soared last year, Radware noted that many were very short, some lasting only a minute or less. Their short duration allegedly makes it more difficult for targeted organizations to detect and respond in real-time. As a result, companies have needed to adapt, implementing automated real-time defense systems for their IT systems.

In October, Microsoft’s Digital Defense Report 2025 ranked the United States, the United Kingdom and Israel as the top three most targeted countries in terms of cyberattacks. The report noted that approximately 20% of all cyberattacks in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) regions were directed against Israel.

The Islamic Republic of Iran and its proxies, including the Hezbollah terror group in Lebanon, were responsible for almost two-thirds (64%) of all cyberattacks against Israel, according to the Radware report.

The number of cyberattacks against Israel notably increased since the Hamas Oct. 7, 2023, attack.

Led by the Iranian regime and its proxies, the attacks have aimed to disrupt Israel’s computer systems and security. Despite the growing cyber threat, most targeted cyberattacks against Israel have been largely unsuccessful.

Last month, Israel’s Cyber Directorate (INCD) and its domestic intelligence agency, Shin Bet, reported that it had prevented hundreds of Iranian cyber attacks against Israeli individuals and organizations since the Oct. 7 attack.

The rise of artificial intelligence has dramatically changed the global cyber landscape. In January, INCD Director Yossi Karadi warned that AI-fueled cyber attacks were only a question of time.

“We cannot choose when the next war will break out – but we can choose to be ready. The government sets strategy and leads national defense, but it is Israel’s cyber industry, with its innovation, agility, and operational experience, that enables Israel to be prepared for the first cyber-based war,” Karadi stated.

Israel has increased its cooperation with the United States and other allied nations to meet the growing security challenges, he added.