recently published a report sharing a review of zero-day in-the-wild exploits in 2023. According to the company, it observed 97
zero-day vulnerabilities
exploited in-the-wild – which is over 50% more than in 2022, but shy of 2021’s record of 106.
Google published its fifth annual review of zero-days exploited in-the-wild, marking the first time Google’s
Threat Analysis Group
(TAG) and
Mandiant
teamed up on the report.
Google CEO’s “good news”
“New report from our Threat Analysis Group + Mandiant observed 97 zero-day vulnerabilities exploited in the wild in 2023, up 50% from 2022,”
Google CEO Sundar Pichai
said in a post on X.
“Good news: investments are making a difference - vulnerabilities once common are virtually non-existent today,” he added.
What the report has to say
To bring out the report, both TAG and Mandiant combined their expertise to analyse zero-days that were actively exploited against both end-user platforms and products (e.g. mobile devices, operating systems, browsers, and other applications) and enterprise-focused technologies such as security software and appliances.
A zero-day is a vulnerability or essentially a security loophole in the or security hole in a computer system which is not known to its owners and/or developers. This loophole is usually exploited by
hackers
to attack people.
“When we analyse the data, we see progress in the fight against zero-days. End user platform vendors, such as Apple, Google and Microsoft, have made notable investments that are having a clear impact on the types — and number — of zero-days that actors are able to exploit. Vulnerabilities that were commonplace in years past are virtually non-existent today,” the company said in the report.
It highlighted that businesses are facing a growing wave of attacks targeting a wider range of software and tools they use. This includes vulnerabilities specific to enterprise technologies.
The report says that the teams have seen success in quickly patching attacker exploits, limiting their effectiveness. Their challenge now is to extend this strategy to the broader landscape of vendors who are increasingly under fire.
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