SMEs are three times more likely to be targeted by cybercriminal attacks than in 2011 according to the latest Internet Security Threat Report from Symantec.

There was a 42 per cent surge in targeted attacks – operations focusing on a specific target or victim as opposed to a large group of people or employees – and small businesses are the focus of 31 per cent of such incidents, up from just over 10 per cent in 2011.

Elsewhere, the Symantec report noted a 58 per cent increase in mobile malware, with the dangers of “malvertising” (which sees criminals buying advertising space on legitimate websites and using it to hide their “attack code”) highlighted in particular.