5,183 breaches from the first nine months of 2019 exposed 7.9 billion records - Help Net Security

5,183 breaches from the first nine months of 2019 exposed 7.9 billion records - Help Net Security

According to Risk Based Security’s Q3 2019 Data Breach QuickView Report, the total number of breaches was up 33.3% compared to Q3 2018, with 5,183 breaches reported in the first nine months of 2019.



Number of breaches by attack vector, reported by 9/30/19


Breach activity in 2019


Breach activity in 2019 is living up to being “the worst year on record”. Although the total number of breaches is on track to break previous year records, the total number of records exposed has already surpassed the 2017 year end total. 7.9 billion records have already been exposed and we are on track to reach as high as 8.5 billion.


“As we look over the experience of 2019, what stands out is that we are often our own worst enemy” commented Inga Goddijn, Executive Vice President at Risk Based Security. “Whether it’s a breaches first months exposed billion records security