Phishing Attacks are the Most Prevalent Source of Identity-Related Breaches
Cybercriminals almost always need to leverage credentials as part of just about any kind of cyberattack. To no surprise, phishing and social engineering play a dominant role.
Usually when we’re talking about cyberattacks, it’s a conversation that starts with an endpoint, a malware infection, and then a succession of malicious actions intent on gathering internal credentials to move laterally, access resources, and eventually the desired data and applications to carry out the final step in the attack – be it ransomware, exfiltration, or fraud.
But, new data found in the Identity Defined Security Alliance’s latest report 2022 Trends in Securing Digital Identities, identity is a target much earlier in an attack and is very often the focus. According to the report, a majority (84%) of organizations have experienced an identity-related breach in the last 12 months. Of these orgs, 78% of them dealt with “direct business impacts” including recovery costs and reputational damage.
Digging a bit deeper, the data begins to reveal the why behind that 84% number. According to the report:
- 59% of organizations have experienced phishing-based campaigns focused on stealing credentials
- 27% experienced social engineered password scams
- 23% experienced brute force password attacks
Each of these experienced relate to one simple factor within an organization’s security strategy – the educating of its’ users. Those organizations that undergo continual Security Awareness Training have a userbase more apt to utilize secure passwords (working to thwart the brute force attacks), and are vigilant enough to spot phishing and social engineering attacks a mile away, stopping cyberattacks – whether focused on identity or not – dead in their tracks.
Free Phishing Security Test
Would your users fall for convincing phishing attacks? Take the first step now and find out before bad actors do. Plus, see how you stack up against your peers with phishing Industry Benchmarks. The Phish-prone percentage is usually higher than you expect and is great ammo to get budget.
Here’s how it works:
- Immediately start your test for up to 100 users (no need to talk to anyone)
- Select from 20+ languages and customize the phishing test template based on your environment
- Choose the landing page your users see after they click
- Show users which red flags they missed, or a 404 page
- Get a PDF emailed to you in 24 hours with your Phish-prone % and charts to share with management
- See how your organization compares to others in your industry
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