The trends above describe who is attacking and why, but how are they getting in? The front doors haven’t changed much, but they’re being left unlocked more often. Initial access brokers (IABs) have emerged as specialized cybercriminals who focus exclusively on breaking in, then selling that access to ransomware groups on underground forums. This division of labor makes attacks even more efficient and harder to prevent.
1. Unpatched vulnerabilities in public-facing systems
Unpatched vulnerabilities remain the leading cause of breaches. Whether it’s a VPN (like SonicWall SSLVPN devices), an exposed remote desktop protocol (RDP), or a file transfer appliance, if it faces the internet and isn’t patched, it will be found. Automated scanners check the entire internet for these flaws within hours of a disclosure.
2. Phishing and compromised credentials
Phishing is more effective than ever with AI. But often, attackers don’t even need to phish you. They just buy your credentials.
Infostealer malware (like RedLine) sucks up saved passwords from browser caches on personal devices, which are then sold on the dark web. Attackers just log in to your VPN or Microsoft 365 account. This is especially dangerous when employees reuse passwords across personal and work accounts—a single breach on a gaming forum or shopping site can give attackers the keys to your corporate network.
This is why security awareness training is so important: employees need to understand the risks of password reuse and the importance of unique, strong credentials for every account.
3. Weak or single-factor authentication
If you don’t have multi-factor authentication (MFA) everywhere, you’re a target. But even withMFA for your business, you aren’t safe if you use weak methods.
Attackers use MFA fatigue (bombarding you with push notifications until you click Approve) or adversary-in-the-middle (AiTM) kits to bypass standard OTP codes. Moving to phishing-resistant MFA (like FIDO2 keys) is the only way to close this gap.
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