Cisco Talos Blog: Available now: 2024 Year in Review

Mar 31, 2025

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Source URL: https://blog.talosintelligence.com/available-now-2024-year-in-review/
Source: Cisco Talos Blog
Title: Available now: 2024 Year in Review

Feedly Summary: Download Talos’ 2024 Year in Review now, and access key insights on the top targeted vulnerabilities of the year, network-based attacks, email threats, adversary toolsets, identity attacks, multi-factor authentication (MFA) abuse, ransomware and AI-based attacks.

AI Summary and Description: Yes

Summary: The Cisco Talos 2024 Year in Review report provides significant insights into current cybersecurity threats and trends, including the increasing prevalence of identity-based attacks and the evolving tactics used by cybercriminals. This analysis is particularly relevant to security professionals seeking to enhance their defenses against contemporary threats.

Detailed Description: The 2024 Year in Review from Cisco Talos highlights critical threat intelligence gathered from a vast network of devices, emphasizing notable trends and the strategies employed by cybercriminals. The report’s major points include:

– **Threat Telemetry Data**: The report is based on data from over 46 million devices worldwide, generating more than 886 billion security events daily. This extensive dataset provides a comprehensive view of the current threat landscape.
– **Key Topics Covered**:
– Top targeted vulnerabilities, particularly those affecting end-of-life (EOL) devices that lack available patches.
– Network-based attacks and email threats that continue to plague organizations.
– The prevalence of identity attacks, which composed 60% of incident response cases handled by Talos.
– Ransomware tactics, including the use of valid accounts for initial access in nearly 70% of cases and a particular focus on the education sector.
– Multi-factor authentication (MFA) attacks predominantly targeting identity and access management (IAM) applications.
– **AI in Cybercrime**: Interestingly, the use of AI and machine learning by threat actors did not meet expectations, as these technologies were more commonly used to enhance existing methods rather than develop new attack techniques.
– **Recommendations for Defense**: The report provides strategic recommendations to help organizations prioritize their defenses and stay ahead of evolving threats as they move into 2025.

Overall, the report underscores the necessity for organizations to adopt robust security measures in response to the rising complexity and volume of cyber threats, particularly those that exploit identity vulnerabilities and utilize stealthy techniques. The insights are invaluable for security professionals tasked with enhancing their cybersecurity posture.

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