Attacks on web applications are on the increase, according to research from data security firm Imperva.

The research shows on that average, web applications experience 27 attacks per hour or roughly one attack every two minutes.

Amichai Shulman, lead researcher and Imperva CTO, says: “The level of automation in cyber attacks continues to shock us. The sheer volume of attacks that can be carried out in such a short period of time is almost unimaginable to most businesses.

“The way hackers have leveraged automation is one of the most significant innovations in criminal history. You can’t automate car theft or purse stealing. But you can automate data theft. Automation will be the driver that makes cyber crime exceed physical crime in terms of financial impact.”