McAfee Enterprise & FireEye predict top cyber threats in 2022

The 2022 Threat Predictions from McAfee Enterprise and FireEye look at the top cybersecurity risks that businesses will face in 2022. Successful methods from 2021 have been copied by bad actors, including those involving ransomware, nation-states, social media, and a shift in reliance on distant labor.

We expect them to incorporate those into next year’s ads and improve their complexity, giving them the ability to wreak even more damage around the world. Skilled engineers and security architects from the newly merged entity provide a preview of how the threat landscape may appear in 2022 and how these new or emerging threats may affect enterprise security.

“Over this past year, we have seen cybercriminals get smarter and quicker at retooling their tactics to follow new bad actor schemes – from ransomware to nation-states – and we don’t anticipate that changing in 2022,” said Raj Samani, fellow and chief scientist of the combined company.

He added, “With the evolving threat landscape and the continued impact of the global pandemic, it is crucial that enterprises stay aware of the cybersecurity trends so that they can be proactive and actionable in protecting their information.”

McAfee Enterprise& FireEye2022 Predictions:

• Use of social media for targeted attacks. This strategy isn’t new, but it’s not often used. After all, “hooking” the target into conversations necessitates some study, and creating bogus profiles is more work than merely locating an open relay someplace on the internet. However, individual targeting has shown to be a very effective route. We believe that the use of this vector will expand not only among espionage groups but also among other threat actors seeking to enter organizations for their own illegal gain.
• Nation states turn to hackers for hire. The mixing of cybercrime and nation-state operations will become more common in 2022. A start-up firm is often founded, and a web of front companies or existing “technology” enterprises is involved in operations directed and controlled by the countries’ intelligence ministries. Companies should audit their visibility and learn from tactics and operations conducted by actors targeting their sector. The initial breach with tactics and tools could be similar to “regular” cybercrime operations; however, it is important to monitor what happens next and act quickly—companies should audit their visibility and learn from tactics and operations conducted by actors targeting their sector.
• Rise of smaller affiliates. Affiliates, or middlemen and women who work with the developers to cut revenues, have evolved the Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) ecosystem. However, RaaS administrators and developers were seen as the most important targets for a long time, with affiliates being overlooked because they were thought to be less capable. This, paired with the RaaS ecosystem’s absence of disruptions, will create an environment in which less-skilled affiliates can thrive and mature into very proficient cybercriminals, eventually with their own minds.
• Game of ransomware thrones. Thanks to these self-reliant cybercrime groups, the balance of power inside the RaaS eco-kingdom will change from those who control the ransomware to those who control the victim’s networks in 2022. In recent years, ransomware has produced billions of dollars, and it’s just a matter of time before some people who believe they aren’t getting their fair share grow enraged.      
• Keep A Close Eye on API. According to recent figures, API-based services account for more than 80% of all internet traffic. API services and apps will become more profitable targets as 5G and IoT traffic increases, exposing personal information. APIs’ interconnected structure could expose firms to additional risks by serving as an entry point for larger supply chain attacks. Attacks on APIs go unnoticed in most situations because they are regarded as trusted pathways and lack the same level of governance and security measures.
• Hijackers Will Target Your Application Containers. Containers have supplanted traditional cloud platforms as the de-facto platform for modern cloud applications. According to a recent IBM survey, 64 percent of early adopters anticipate containerizing more than half of their existing and new business apps over the next two years. The increased use of containers, on the other hand, enhances an organization’s attack surface. While container attacks are not new, we expect to see increased exploitation on the orchestration layers in 2022 and an increase in the use of malicious or backdoored images due to poor vulnerability checks and assaults targeting vulnerable apps.
• Zero Cares About Zero-Days. Considering the number of zero-day vulnerabilities exposed in the wild, 2021 is already being dubbed one of the worst years on record. The scale of these exploitations, the range of targeted applications, and the resulting organizational repercussions were all noteworthy. As we look ahead to 2022, we expect these variables to accelerate the rate at which businesses respond. As a result, we may expect increased attention to asset and patch management. Companies will place a renewed emphasis on decreasing their “time to patch,” from identifying public-facing assets to promptly distributing patches despite the potential business impact.