Ransomware —

Average ransom payment drops to $711,000 but Australian businesses still targeted.

In its fifth year, McGrathNicol has partnered with YouGov to survey over 800 decision makers across Australian businesses with 50 or more employees. This year’s survey was designed to reflect the current business landscape, one dominated by small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Attitudes to ransomware payments are changing.

Following the introduction of mandatory reporting requirements in May 2025, fewer business leaders are paying and they are paying less. Overall, the average cyber ransom paid has dropped to $711,000 from a high of $1.35 million in 2024. Of those that suffered an attack in the past five years, 64% chose to pay the ransom demand—a significant decline from 84%.

The McGrathNicol 2025 survey identifies three critical payment drivers: insurance coverage amounts are declining; regulatory and reputational pressure is increasing; and there is growing scepticism of ransom payments as the ‘default’ recovery option. Higher levels of preparedness and increased executive engagement are also contributing to less payments. The pace of ransomware attacks is unrelenting however, and with 81% of executives still ‘willing’ to pay, more work needs to be done.