CONFIRMED RANSOMWARE ATTACKS · COUNTRY
Ransomnews has confirmed 44 ransomware attacks in Portugal between August 2018 and September 2026, each one verified against a public source such as a breach notification, regulatory filing, court record or press report. That is 0.5% of the 9,715 confirmed incidents in the dataset. So far in 2026, 6 have been confirmed, against 3 in 2025 and 2 in 2024. The most affected sector is government, with 16 confirmed victims (36%). Lisbon is the city with the most confirmed victims, at 15. Where the operator is attributed, LockBit leads with 5 confirmed victims. No ransom payment is on the public record; a refusal is recorded in 11 cases and the outcome is unrecorded in the remaining 33.
Confirmed ransomware attacks in Portugal by year
The current year is a partial count. Confirmation lags the attack itself, so recent months keep filling in after the fact; read a low figure for the latest year as incomplete rather than as a decline.
| Year | Confirmed attacks | Ransom paid (public) | Ransom refused (public) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| 2022 | 17 | 0 | 3 |
| 2023 | 9 | 0 | 4 |
| 2024 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 2026 (year to date) | 6 | 0 | 1 |
Which ransomware groups attack organisations in Portugal most
The operator is attributed in 27 of the 44 confirmed incidents. Counts are confirmed victims, not leak-site claims, so they run well below the totals the groups publish about themselves. Group names link to the live Ransomtracker profile where one exists.
Most active groups by confirmed victims
Where the confirmed attacks in Portugal fall
Most affected sectors
Cities with the most confirmed victims
Ransom payment outcomes in Portugal
Among the 11 confirmed incidents in Portugal where the outcome is on the public record, 0 paid and 11 refused, a disclosed payment rate of 0%. The remaining 33 carry no public statement either way. Victims that pay have every incentive to stay quiet and public bodies are the most likely to announce a refusal, so treat this as the disclosed rate, not the true one. The ransomware payment rate analysis explains how the disclosed rate has moved since 2018 and how it compares with incident-response firm samples.
Largest confirmed ransomware attacks in Portugal by records exposed
Record counts are recorded only where a named source disclosed them, which is the minority of cases, so this table ranks disclosed impact rather than true impact.
| Date | Organisation | Sector | Location | Records | Group | Ransom paid | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2022 | TAP Air Portugal | Transportation | Lisbon, Portugal | 115,000 | Ragnar Locker | Unknown | bleepingcomputer.com |
Most recent confirmed ransomware attacks in Portugal
The 25 most recently confirmed of 44 incidents, newest first. Every row links to the public source it was verified against.
| Date | Organisation | Sector | Location | Records | Group | Ransom paid | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2026 | Comunidade Intermunicipal (CIM) da Região de Leiria | Government | Leiria, Portugal | — | — | Unknown | dn.pt |
| July 2026 | Universidade de Aveiro | Education | Aveiro, Portugal | — | — | No | publico.pt |
| July 2026 | Metro Mondego | Government | Coimbra, Portugal | — | The Gentlemen | Unknown | tugatech.com.pt |
| June 2026 | Misericórdia de Santo Tirso | Healthcare | Santo Tirso, Portugal | — | Qilin | Unknown | misericordia-santotirso.org |
| May 2026 | Câmara de Serpa | Government | Serpa, Portugal | — | — | Unknown | radiopax.com |
| March 2026 | The Navigator Company | Manufacturing | Lisbon, Portugal | — | SafePay | Unknown | jornaldenegocios.pt |
| August 2025 | Grupo Agris | Other | Cadaval, Portugal | — | — | Unknown | agris.pt |
| March 2025 | Entidade Reguladora dos Serviços de Água e Resíduos (ERSAR) | Government | Lisbon, Portugal | — | Warlock | Unknown | securitymagazine.pt |
| March 2025 | Global Media Group | Other | Lisbon, Portugal | — | Nitrogen | Unknown | noticiasaominuto.com |
| November 2024 | Município de Chaves | Government | Chaves, Portugal | — | Qilin | Unknown | jn.pt |
| October 2024 | Agência para a Modernização Administrativa (AMA) | Government | Lisbon, Portugal | — | — | Unknown | securitymagazine.pt |
| October 2023 | Comissão de Coordenação e Desenvolvimento Regional do Centro, I.P. | Government | Coimbra, Portugal | — | LockBit | Unknown | expresso.pt |
| September 2023 | Câmara Municipal de Gondomar | Government | Gondomar, Portugal | — | Rhysida | No | therecord.media |
| August 2023 | Serviço De Saúde Da Região Autónoma Da Madeira (SESARAM) | Healthcare | Madeira, Portugal | — | — | No | expresso.pt |
| June 2023 | Luís Simoes | Transportation | Loures, Portugal | — | Play | Unknown | expresso.pt |
| May 2023 | Câmara de Lagoa | Government | Lagoa, Portugal | — | — | No | theportugalnews.com |
| May 2023 | Politécnico de Leiria | Education | Leiria, Portugal | — | Akira | Unknown | tugatech.com.pt |
| March 2023 | Câmara de Odemira | Government | Odemira, Portugal | — | — | No | odigital.sapo.pt |
| January 2023 | Águas e Energia do Porto | Government | Porto, Portugal | — | LockBit | Unknown | tugatech.com.pt |
| January 2023 | Una Seguros | Finance | Lisbon, Portugal | — | Play | Unknown | unaseguros.pt |
| December 2022 | Instituto Nacional de Emergência Médica (INEM) | Healthcare | Lisbon, Portugal | — | — | Unknown | tugatech.com.pt |
| December 2022 | Inforlandia | Technology | Lisbon, Portugal | 0 | Royal | No | tugatech.com.pt |
| December 2022 | Porto de Lisboa | Government | Lisbon, Portugal | — | LockBit | Unknown | publico.pt |
| November 2022 | Universidade Católica Portuguesa | Education | Porto, Portugal | — | Vice Society | Unknown | tugatech.com.pt |
| October 2022 | University of Beira Interior | Education | Covilhã, Portugal | — | — | Unknown | tek.sapo.pt |
Frequently asked questions
How many ransomware attacks in Portugal have been confirmed?
Ransomnews has confirmed 44 ransomware attacks in Portugal since August 2018, including 6 so far in 2026. Each one is verified against a public source such as a breach notification, regulatory filing or press report. The true total is higher, because many victims never disclose; confirmed counts are a floor, not a ceiling.
Which ransomware group is most active in Portugal?
LockBit, with 5 confirmed victims, followed by Hive (3) and Play (2). These are confirmed victims, not leak-site claims, counted among the 27 incidents where the operator is attributed.
Which sector is hit most by ransomware in Portugal?
Government, with 16 confirmed incidents (36% of the total). Healthcare follows with 10, then Education with 5.
Which cities in Portugal have the most confirmed ransomware attacks?
Lisbon (15), Coimbra (3), Porto (3), Leiria (2), Loures (2). City is recorded where the victim organisation is headquartered or the incident was reported, so distributed organisations are counted once.
How often do ransomware victims in Portugal pay the ransom?
Among the 11 confirmed incidents in Portugal with a public outcome, 0 paid and 11 refused, a disclosed payment rate of 0%. Most victims never state whether they paid, and those who pay have the least reason to say so, so the disclosed rate understates real payment behaviour. The payment rate analysis tracks this figure since 2018.
What is the largest confirmed Portugal ransomware attack by records exposed?
TAP Air Portugal (Lisbon, Portugal, August 2022), with 115,000 records exposed according to bleepingcomputer.com. Record counts exist only where a source disclosed them, so this ranks disclosed impact.
How to read this page. Every incident counted here was verified by Ransomnews against at least one public source. Leak-site listings alone do not qualify, because operators inflate, duplicate and occasionally fabricate claims, so these totals are a defensible floor rather than a full census. Records exposed and ransom outcomes appear only where a named source disclosed them. The page is regenerated from the live database, which refreshes weekly. Cite as: Ransomnews Confirmed Ransomware Attacks Dataset, ransomnews.com, with a link to this page. Bulk access and methodology questions: [email protected]. See also the monthly ransomware statistics and the Ransomtracker.