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Complexities Compounding in Cyber Landscape; WEF Global Cybersecurity Outlook 2025 Analysis

WEF Global Cybersecurity Outlook 2025

New Regulations & Directives to Boost Cyber Defense; DORA & NIS2

DORA & NIS2
EU Regulations to Strengthen Cyber defense

Codefinger Ransomware attack encrypts Amazon S3 buckets

Ransomware crew dubbed Codefinger targets AWS S3 buckets
Sets data-destruct timer for 7 days
Threat actors demand for Ransom payment made for the symmetric AES-256 keys required to decrypt it

Amazon S3 buckets encrypted using AWS’s Server-Side Encryption with Customer Provided Keys (SSE-C) and somehow the threat actors knew details of the keys. And this made them demand ransoms to demand the decryption key.

The campaign was discovered by Halcyon , and according to them the threat actors after exploiting the compromised keys, they called the “x-amz-server-side-encryption-customer-algorithm” header and use a locally stored AES-256 encryption key they generate to lock up the victims’ files. There is great chance that more cyber criminal groups can adopt the tactic and use.

The threat actor looks for keys with permissions to write and read S3 objects (s3:GetObject and s3:PutObject requests), and then launches the encryption process by calling the SSE-C algorithm, utilizing a locally generated and stored AES-256 encryption key.

“It is important to note that this attack does not require the exploitation of any AWS vulnerability but instead relies on the threat actor first obtaining an AWS customer’s account credentials,” Halcyon notes.

According to Halcyon, because the attack relies on AWS’s infrastructure for encryption, it is impossible to recover the encrypted data without the symmetric AES-256 keys required to decrypt it. Halcyon reported its findings to Amazon, and the cloud services provider told them that they do their best to promptly notify customers who have had their keys exposed so they can take immediate action.

In recent month hackers and cyber criminal have gained traction In recent months and have begun targeting their product gateways and find ways to extort customers using it.

Unlike traditional ransomware that encrypts files locally, this attack operates directly within the AWS environment, exploiting the inherent security of SSE-C to render data irretrievable without the attacker’s decryption keys says Halcyon team.

Ransomware capabilities gain new tactics where the threat actor first obtains an AWS customer’s account credentials and there is no know method that data can be recovered without paying the ransom.

As per AWS they encourage customers to utilize their security tools, such as IAM roles, Identity Center and Secrets Manager, to minimize credential exposure and improve defense postures.

Sources:

https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/13/ransomware_crew_abuses_compromised_aws/

www.Bleeping computers.com

Cybersecurity Trends for 2025; Responsible AI to gain Importance

Cyber security trends as per research and data available shows that responsible AI will gain importance with more public scrutiny of risks growing along with remediation practices. Organizations will now require to balance taking risks with AI and having rapid remediation strategies available.

As per experts the areas that will get attention will be cloud security and data location. In 2025, new laws may require that sensitive data stay within national borders, affecting how companies manage and store data across regions. As businesses and critical services become increasingly dependent on cloud services, some countries may prioritize cloud availability in national emergency plans, recognizing that stable cloud access is mandatory for crisis management. This shift could lead towards the establishment of a new program like Cloud Service Priority (CSP), treating cloud infrastructure as important as utilities like electricity and telecoms.

How organization need to prepare themselves as big and small businesses and brands will see dramatically increased risks, as bad actors using AI will launch convincing impersonation attacks. This will make it easier with higher accuracy than ever to fool customers and clients.

Key Cyber Security Trends of 2025

As organization navigate through 2025 we will witness that threat actors will increasingly use AI for sophisticated phishing, vishing, and social engineering attacks.

Gen-AI

Generative AI is driving an unprecedented surge in cyber fraud, with nearly 47% of organisations identifying adversarial AI-powered attacks as their primary concern, according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Cybersecurity Outlook 2025.

Due to technological advancements the Cyberspace is growing more complex due to technological advancements as they are interconnected to supply chains. Collaboration between public and private sectors is essential to secure the benefits of digitalization at all levels.

Digitalization

76% of cybersecurity leaders report difficulties navigating a patchwork of global policies and 66% of organizations expect AI to transform cybersecurity, only 37% have implemented safeguards to secure these tools before deployment.

IoT Devices Vulnerable

Hackers will grow attacks on IoT devices as per research by Analytics insights report 2025 as over 30 billion devices across the globe will be connected through the Internet of Things. IoT enhance productivity offering convenience but due to their low-security backgrounds hackers may utilize opportunity to obtain sensitive information, or form massive botnets to execute Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks. (Analytics insight)

Ransomware

Attackers have resorted to different methods of extortion, involving ransom demands along with DDoS attacks. Encryption and fileless ransomware are being developed in an attempt to evade detection. RaaS makes it increasingly easy for non-technical users to carry out advanced attacks and the trend is growing. Experts predict that, by 2025, ransomware attacks will occur globally every two seconds prime targets remain in the healthcare, education, and government sectors.

AI /ML

To survive in highly competitive environment hackers will continue using AI so as organization will continue with previous theme of 2024 application of artificial intelligence and this will expand along with machine learning (ML) as these tools are the game changer in in a cybersecurity strategy.

Quantum Computing

The year 2025 will witness the rise and development of Quantum Computing and computers.An exciting technological development; however, it also generates grave challenges for cybersecurity. Quantum computers solve complex problems much faster than classical computers, making traditional cryptography algorithms vulnerable to quantum attacks is equally necessary to be proactive, with an immediate focus on quantum-safe encryption that would last to provide safety to the digital security systems in the years to follow. McKinsey poll says, 72% of tech executives, investors and quantum computing academics believe that “a fully fault-tolerant quantum computer” will be here by 2035, while 28% think this won’t happen until at least 2040. With Quantum computing business can protect their data and stay ahead of quantum threats with the right tools and strategies in place.

Regulations

Regulatory changes and compliance will evolve in 2025 as government across the European countries are gearing up with regulation being prepared to protect against surge of ransomware attacks, introducing stringent measures to combat the growing menace of cyber extortion. The EU emerged as a frontrunner in cybersecurity regulation, with the Network and Information Security (NIS2) Directive coming into full force.

BISO Analytics: In 2025 we will witness rise of virtual CISO (vCISO) or CSO consultant roles over full-time in-house roles. Also Shifting CISO responsibilities have brought about an increasing role for BISOs. The cybersecurity team has a lot to handle as companies face more cyber threats, compliance requirements, growing remote workforces, and rapid adoption of new cloud-based technologies. With such a large scope of duty, the CISO is often over stretched and in this complex cybersecurity environment having a BISO will bring in support to entire cyber security strategy.
BISO ‘s may also be called upon to interact with marketing and corporate communications, bringing their research into potential attack vectors, typical points of vulnerability, and unique understanding of the hackers mindset and guide organizations that are increasingly battening cybersecurity strategy to deal with various attack vectors.

Intrucept offers BISO Analytics as a services. BISOs are crucial for strategies requiring technical cybersecurity and strategic business input.

Organizations need bespoke solutions to defend against attacks across email, social, and other channels as we witness evolving nature of attacks demands continuous weekly innovation to stay ahead. The use of Multifactor authentication reduces the danger in identity and access management EDR solutions with feeds of threat intelligence will gain prominence. Intrucept is dedicated in helping organizations to run fast and be secure. We will always find that being easy and slowing down is a tendency but we as organization try to enable our customers to maintain speed (and even accelerate).

References:

McKinsey Lock Down! Top Cybersecurity Threats We May Witness in 2025 Healthcare Trends Shaping 2025 And Insights For Industry Leaders Lock Down! Top Cybersecurity Threats We May Witness in 2025
Healthcare Trends Shaping 2025 And Insights For Industry Leaders
https://www.cisecurity.org/insights/blog/12-cis-experts-cybersecurity-predictions-2025

LogoFAIL Exploited to Deploy Bootkitty, the first UEFI bootkit for Linux

Researchers have uncovered the first UEFI bootkit designed specifically for Linux systems, named Bootkitty.

Tailored Security Solutions for Maritime Operations by Intrucept 

Tailored Security Solutions from Maritime Operations by Intrucept 

Social login flaws put billions of users at risk of account takeover

Flaws in social login mechanisms are leaving thousands of websites and a billion of their users vulnerable to account takeovers, API security company Salt Security warns. The latest research by Salt Security identified flaws in the access token verification step of the social sign-in process, part of the OAuth implementation on these websites.

Cisco Zero-Day Exploited to Implant Malicious Lua Backdoor

Cisco has identified a critical security issue affecting its IOS XE software, specifically a zero-day vulnerability tracked as CVE-2023-20273 with a CVSS score of 7.2. This flaw is actively exploited by unknown threat actors to deploy a malicious Lua-based implant on vulnerable devices. Additionally, this zero-day was utilized in conjunction with CVE-2023-20198 (CVSS score: 10.0) to create an exploit chain.

Urgent Security Alert: Indian Government Warns iPhone and iPad Users to Update Immediately

In today’s digital age, our smartphones have become an essential part of our lives. They store sensitive information, offer access to personal accounts, and play a vital role in communication. As a result, it is crucial to stay updated on the latest security advisories, especially for mobile devices.

New WordPress Backdoor Threatens Website Security: A Closer Look

The world of cybersecurity is constantly evolving, and so are the threats to websites and online platforms. In a recent discovery, a dangerous new malware has emerged, camouflaging itself as a legitimate caching plugin, specifically targeting WordPress websites. This insidious backdoor has the potential to wreak havoc by creating rogue administrators, taking control of websites, and undermining both user privacy and SEO rankings. This blog post will delve into the details of this new threat, its disguise, and its capabilities.