Nearly a third of serious cyberattacks against Israeli targets went unreported to the authorities since the introduction of new regulations mandating disclosure, the Privacy Protection Authority announced last week.
According to financial news outlet Calcalist, the government agency released data showing that it had dealt with 146 severe incidents but that only 103 had been flagged for its attention by the targeted organizations.
Regulations that went into effect last May require local companies and nonprofits that maintain databases of personal information to report breaches.
Despite Israeli efforts to protect consumer data, there appears to be a gap between legislation and adherence to the law, as well as a lack of technical expertise.
There have been several cases recorded of citizens’ private data making its way from government databases into private hands. Concerns have also been raised about authorities’ ability to prevent online interference in Israeli elections.
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Earlier this year, hackers managed to scrawl “Jerusalem is capital of Palestine” across many Israeli web pages after temporarily blocking sites such as Ynet and McDonald’s.
Companies that fail to report attacks can be fined or punished in a variety of other ways, the Privacy Protection Authority told Calcalist.
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