BANGALORE: Companies in China, Hong Kong and India have reported the highest number of cyber attacks linked to nation-states, causing an estimated average financial loss of $2.7 million globally, according to a new survey.

Price Waterhouse Coopers in 'The Global State of Information Security Survey 2015' has said the number of respondents who say they have been compromised by nation-states has increased by a huge 86 per cent.

The survey found a striking 64 per cent jump in security incidents attributed to competitors, some of whom may be backed by nation-states. "Given the ability of nation-state adversaries to carry out attacks without detection, we believe the volume of compromises is very likely under-reported," it said.

Nation-state driven cyber attacks are routinely conducted on a global scale to defend national sovereignty and project national power. Nation-states often target critical infrastructure providers and supplies to steal IP and trade secrets as a means to advance their own political and economic advantages, the survey said.

Globally, the estimated average financial loss from cyber incidents was $ 2.7 million, a 34-percent increase over 2013. "It isn't surprising, therefore, to find that nation-state incidents are most frequent among sectors such as oil and gas (11 per cent), aerospace and defence (9 per cent), technology (9 per cent) and telecommunications (8 per cent)," said PWC.