Despite Linux’s reputation as the most secure operating system, it is not immune to malware.

In fact, Linux malware has become increasingly prevalent in recent years as more and more devices and servers run on Linux operating systems.

According to data analysed by Atlas VPN based on malware threat statistics from AV-ATLAS, new Linux malware threats hit record numbers in 2022, increasing by 50% to 1.9 million.

The majority — 854,690 — of new Linux malware samples were detected in the first quarter of 2022. In the second quarter, new malware samples dropped by almost 3% to 833,065.

New Linux malware numbers plummeted again in the third quarter of the year, this time by a whopping 91% to 75,841. However, in the fourth quarter of 2022, they picked up again, growing by 117% to 164,697.

Other operating systems see a decline in new malware

While Linux malware reached never-before-seen numbers in 2022, the total number of new malware developments actually fell. Compared to 2021, when 121.6 million samples were detected, new malware numbers dropped by 39% to 73.7 million in 2022.