Security | Threat Detection | Cyberattacks | DevSecOps | Compliance

In 2024, I published Feline Hackers Among Us? (A Deep Dive and Simulation of the Meow Attack), which explored the notorious Meow attack campaign that had plagued unsecured databases since 2020. That article focused on demonstrating the attack against a single MongoDB instance using a simple Python script. A proof-of-concept that illustrates how devastating misconfigurations can be.

On July 25, 2025, St. Paul, Minnesota, suffered a digital crisis. Initially, it looked like a few irregular system alerts. In reality, it was a coordinated ransomware attack by the notorious Interlock gang. This gang has been on the radar of federal investigators for quite some time. The St Paul cyber attack forced the city to shut down its networks and suspend online services. People switched to paper-based operations to prevent further damage.

Cybercrime is growing at a rapid pace, and ransomware has become one of the most significant threats to businesses today. These attacks spread quickly across networks using strong encryption and target companies of all sizes. Security leaders, such as CISOs and CIOs, now carry far greater responsibility. They need to protect digital assets, manage crises, and maintain business operations even in the event of an attack.

Human error remains the primary exploitation vector in mobile security incidents, according to Verizon’s latest Mobile Security Index (MSI). “At 44%, user behavior is the top cited breach contributor, just ahead of app threats, network threats, and internet threats, which were each cited by 43% of survey respondents,” the report says.

Part of our two-part series on the evolution from EASM to EEM. This post introduces the core shift from visibility to real-world exposure validation and why the legacy approach to external risk is no longer enough. External Attack Surface Management, or EASM, was once revolutionary. It gave organizations their first real visibility into the sprawling digital footprint created by cloud adoption, remote work, and third-party services. But the threat landscape has evolved. And EASM has not kept up.

Recharging the battery of phones, tablets, or laptops in public places such as airports, stations, hotels, or cafés is quite normal and convenient. Everybody does it while traveling or working on the go. Most of these charging points rely on USB ports, which not only deliver power but also support data transfer. In recent years, cybersecurity authorities such as the FBI and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) have warned users about a rising cyber threat known as juice jacking.

Account takeover (ATO) protection is the frontline defense that prevents criminals from using stolen or spoofed credentials to impersonate legitimate customers. The problem is speed. In 2024, Verizon reported that phishing kits were able to harvest the first credential in under 60 seconds, while banks typically only detected fraud several hours later. That lag helped drive a staggering surge in ATO with 83% of financial institutions reporting direct business impact.

To close out Trustwave’s, A LevelBlue Company, Cybersecurity Awareness Month 2025 coverage, we will take a look at securing critical infrastructure, one of the focus areas for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). For our complete coverage, please see: Cybersecurity Awareness Month 2025: The Value of MSSPs and Cybersecurity Awareness Month 2025: 4 Steps to Build a Cyber Strong America.

76% of organizations are struggling to keep up with the sophistication of AI-powered attacks, according to CrowdStrike’s latest State of Ransomware Survey. “Most organizations (87%) consider AI-generated social engineering tactics more convincing than traditional methods,” the report says.