Cybersecurity always needs to innovate its strategies. Advancements in technology make it easier to defend against threats, but bad actors are using the same technology to find new ways to evade or manipulate security protocols.
The sophistication and success of cybercriminal activities are escalating. It poses several challenges for global security. The projected financial impact of cybercrime is expected to rise to $13.82 trillion by 2028.
The escalation underscores the need to stay ahead of emerging threats. Threat intelligence is an essential tool to help inform an organization’s approach to cybersecurity. By understanding potential threats, organizations can build a strong defense.
What are the Emerging Cyber Threats in Today’s Landscape?
The cybersecurity landscape is complex and hard to predict. Looking at trends can help indicate the direction cybercriminals are taking with their attacks. Let’s take a deeper dive at emerging cyber threats:
AI-driven attacks
Bad actors are using AI to enhance their cyber attacks. One survey found that over half of IT and cybersecurity decision-makers believe bad actors are using AI to write believable and legitimate-sounding phishing emails.
Another element of generative AI-driven attacks is the use of deepfake technology. Cloning an individual’s appearance and voice is frequently used to manipulate people into thinking they are communicating with a real person.
According to Google’s Cybersecurity Forecast 2025 report, AI-powered information operations is also an emerging cyberthreat. Bad actors are leveraging AI for content creation and developing articles for inauthentic websites. They are also using it to backstop inauthentic personas – a process of creating fake identities that appear trustworthy and genuine.
Beyond improving their social engineering tactics, bad actors are also experimenting with using AI for vulnerability research, code development, and reconnaissance.
While AI has many good uses, it’s critical to notice how bad actors are using LLMs and other technologies to create sophisticated cyberattacks that may bypass your current security measures.
Infostealer malware
Widespread infostealer campaigns have continued to grow in popularity. Infostealer variants such as Redline, Raccoon, Titan, Aurora, and Vidar infect devices and steal information like saved passwords, session cookies, and form fill data. The data is combined into “stealer logs” which are highly valuable on the dark web markets and illicit Telegram channels.
Some other possible data that infostealer programs can collect include:
- Web browser’s fingerprint
- Operating system information
- ISP information
- Cryptocurrency wallet logins
- Potentially sensitive files
According to Flare’s research, about 2% of stealer logs (almost 380,000 logs) contain credentials for common business applications like Salesforce, Hubspot, and AWS. Employees may save their login information on devices which can increase the risk of compromised credentials.
If multi-factor authentication (MFA) isn’t enabled, organizations are at a higher risk of a data breach. Google notes that infostealer malware has developed sophisticated capabilities to evade and bypass endpoint detection and response (EDR).
Compromised identities
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Entering the correct password isn’t enough to confirm a user’s identity. With the rise of leaked credentials, bad actors are in a better position to compromise identities and take over an account.
Besides having access to corporate data, bad actors can also start impersonating the user. It can have a downstream effect as people believe they are interacting with a trusted source since the account is authentic.
Organizations must take a proactive approach to verify the identities of users. Some methods to ensure strong authentication include:
- Requiring multi-factor authentication
- Implementing shorter session lifetime
- Reviewing the identity risk of users
Another layer of protection can include credential theft monitoring. Advanced tools can search the clear and dark web for mentions of an organization and possible login credentials. It provides valuable insights into potential leaks and relevant threats. The automated process can make it easier for security teams to respond to threat actor activity.
Cloud security challenges
Cloud security is a critical part of protecting an organization’s systems and data. Rapid cloud adoption and hybrid environments can create issues and challenges for organizations. Teams may face misconfigurations, inadequate monitoring, and reuse of login credentials.
As critical infrastructure relies more on clouds, there may be a rise in regulations. Adapting to these circumstances takes more effort from security teams. Organizations need to prepare to allocate the proper resources to have robust security solutions.
Ransomware
While ransomware isn’t a new threat, it’s still a prominent threat to organizations. It’s an extremely disruptive cyberattack and nearly every industry is vulnerable.
Bad actors don’t even need to be technically skilled to deploy a ransomware attack. Ransomware as a service (RaaS) allows cybercriminals to purchase ransomware code from another threat actor. With the ease of RaaS, organizations will have to protect themselves from data theft extortion.
Growing attack surfaces
Organizations have rapidly grown their attack surfaces in recent years. Cloud computing, remote work, open-source software, and Internet of Things (IoT) devices contribute to the number of possible entry points for cyberattacks. A large attack surface makes it difficult for security teams to gain visibility into their systems and maintain a strong security posture.
Protecting Against Emerging Cyber Threats with Flare
How does Flare monitor emerging cyber threats?
Organizations often have limited resources to manage emerging threats. While threat monitoring is a crucial part of a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy, it’s not easy to do it manually.
Searching through illicit sources on the dark web for relevant stealer logs is not always the most efficient use of a security professional’s time. The Flare Threat Exposure Management (TEM) solution empowers organizations to proactively detect, prioritize, and mitigate the types of exposures commonly exploited by threat actors.
Our platform automatically scans the clear & dark web and prominent threat actor communities 24/7 to discover unknown events, prioritize risks, and deliver actionable intelligence you can use instantly to improve security.
Flare and Emerging Cyber Threats
Keep up with cybercrime news about emerging cyber threats with Leaky Weekly, a premier podcast for busy security practitioners. Each episode covers the most pressing stories on data leaks, cybercrime, and the dark web.
Leaky Weekly will keep you updated about the rapidly evolving world of cybersecurity and emerging threats. Listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or watch on YouTube.
