Which cyber security trends will dominate 2025?

The world of cyber security is in constant flux, as hackers and cyber security professionals battle it out to stay one step ahead of one another. As technology continues to advance, so do the tactics of cyber criminals, who are exploiting vulnerabilities at an alarming rate. Organisations need to brace for a new wave of threats driven by advanced technologies and increasingly sophisticated attack vectors.

As cyber threats elevate, so do the financial complications for organisations. The 2024 IBM Cost of a Data Breach Report reveals that the global average cost of a breach has soared to a record £3.5 million, with sectors such as healthcare facing even steeper costs. It now takes more than 290 days to identify and contain a breach, leaving organisations exposed for extended periods. With such alarming statistics, the need for cyber security to evolve has never been clearer.

With this in mind, let’s take a look at the key trends our cyber security experts predict will dominate the cyber security landscape in 2025 and beyond, and how your organisation can prepare for these emerging threats.

1. Artificial Intelligence (AI) Driven Cyber Attacks to Grow, But Not Explode

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been the buzzword of 2024. We’ve attended numerous events, exhibitions, and conferences throughout the year, and it’s consistently a key discussion point. But how is it impacting cyber security?

As AI and machine learning (ML) become more widespread, cyber criminals are leveraging them to automate cyber attacks, craft advanced phishing emails, and exploit vulnerabilities. This growth shows no sign of slowing.

That said, the game-changing explosion in AI powered cyber attacks feared by many experts seems unlikely to arrive in 2025. Cyber attacks are still ultimately human operated, with AI generally, at least in the near future, helping hackers but not leading attacks in a major way.

While AI in cyber security is nothing new – many Managed Detection and Response (MDR) solutions already use it to handle large volumes of data – we are continuing to see real growth in AI-led tools speeding up cyber security processes and helping to spot patterns in incident detection.

So, in 2025 expect to see AI-led changes on both sides of the struggle – a slow and steady growth in AI assisted cyber attacks as well as increasingly effective AI powered tools speeding up incident detection and response.

How to Strengthen Your Defences

Martyn Clews, Cyber Specialist at Wavenet: “To defend against AI-driven cyber attacks, organisations should use AI and machine learning in their security systems to detect and block threats in real time. Regular updates and patches are essential to fix vulnerabilities that attackers may exploit. User training should focus on recognising AI-generated phishing attempts, including deepfakes. Companies must also protect sensitive data from being exposed to unsecured AI platforms. By adopting a proactive, AI-enhanced defence strategy, organisations can stay ahead of evolving cyber threats.”

2. Supply Chain Attacks

Supply chain attacks will remain a significant security threat in 2025 due to the increasing complexity and interconnected nature of global supply chains. More and more organisations are relying on third-party vendors for critical services and software, and as a result, the attack surface expands, providing cyber criminals with more entry points to exploit.

These attacks are particularly dangerous because they target trusted relationships, allowing threat actors to bypass traditional security defences and gain access to sensitive systems across multiple organisations. With the rise of digital transformation, reliance on cloud services, and the continued use of open-source software, supply chain vulnerabilities will become even more attractive for attackers, making vendor risk management and monitoring an essential undertaking for organisations moving forward.

How to Strengthen Your Defences

Martin Lewis, Operational Resilience and Cyber Security Sales Manager at Wavenet states “As global supply chains grow increasingly complex, organisations must implement more advanced strategies to ensure resilience. With rising regulatory scrutiny and greater risks, the need for stronger risk management has never been more critical. By identifying key suppliers, establishing effective monitoring systems, and creating comprehensive contingency plans, businesses can minimise the risks tied to outsourcing, and safeguard operational continuity.

Proactively managing supply chain risks is not merely a best practice — it is essential for long-term success and maintaining supply chain resilience”.

3. Ransomware Evolution

Ransomware remains one of the most significant threats to organisations, showing no signs of slowing down. In fact, 66% of organisations were affected by a ransomware attack last year . Worse yet, these attacks are evolving, with a new trend: double extortion, and in some cases, even quadruple extortion. In double extortion, attackers first demand payment to unlock encrypted files or systems, followed by a second ransom to prevent the release of sensitive data online or on the dark web.

We also expect Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) platforms to continue to grow, enabling less-skilled criminals to carry out sophisticated attacks. The use of AI-driven encryption and more advanced payload delivery methods will make ransomware even more effective and harder to defend against.

How to Strengthen Your Defences

Jack Howey, Testing Service Director at Wavenet shares his thoughts: “Facing a ransomware attack is a nightmare scenario, but with the right preparation and response strategy, it can also be an opportunity for improvement. Ensuring you have a reliable incident response plan, adequate backups, and additional IT resources on standby can make the difference between a catastrophic loss and a successful recovery”.

4. Insider Threats

We’ve been warning our customers about the rising risks of insider threats since the shift to hybrid working, and we believe they will remain a significant concern in 2025 as organisations continue to adapt to hybrid models, increased cloud adoption, and reliance on third-party contractors. With more employees and contractors accessing sensitive data and systems remotely, the risk of both malicious and accidental insider breaches will only grow.

Insider threats can lead to malware, data corruption, theft, financial fraud, and identity theft, causing reputational damage, lost business, fines, and legal action. Disgruntled or careless employees will continue to pose risks, with insider attacks often going undetected for long periods and resulting in significant financial and operational damage.

How to Strengthen Your Defences

Lucy Sharp, Cyber Operations Director at Wavenet “To address this, organisations must strengthen monitoring, access control measures, and training. Insider threat detection will increasingly rely on behavioural analytics and anomaly detection to identify risks early. Real-time detection, swift investigation, and strong prevention measures, such as VPNs and enforcing security policies, are essential to minimising these threats.”

5. Application Programming Interface (API) Security Risks

In 2024 we’ve seen a significant increase in the use of API interfaces. Of course this is nothing new, for years APIs have been the bedrock of the modern digital world, but increasingly their ubiquity in today’s interconnected world has made them prime targets for hackers.

The increasing reliance on APIs exposes a larger attack surface. Hackers exploit misconfigured, poorly secured, or overly permissive APIs to steal data, infiltrate systems, and disrupt services. APIs often serve as direct conduits to sensitive information, such as user credentials, financial data, and proprietary algorithms, making them lucrative targets.

Many organisations adopt APIs at scale without robust security practices, prioritizing speed over safeguards. Insufficient authentication, unencrypted transmissions, and lack of proper rate limiting are common vulnerabilities. Additionally, APIs most vulnerability scanners overlook APIs, leaving networks dangerously exposed to attack.

This issue refers back to our earlier point on the risks inherent in supply chains. As the complexity of our online operations grows and more and more technologies and organisations are involved, it becomes increasingly hard to stay abreast of the associated risks.

How to Strengthen Your Defences

Jack Howey, Testing Service Director at Wavenet: “The key here is to be aware of how and where you are using APIs and being sure to include them in any testing and vulnerability scanning you carry out. Similarly, as ever it’s crucial you stay informed on APIs used in external software and applications your organisation is using.”

6. Board-level Cyber Representation

Historically cyber has not always had a fair hearing in the boardroom. Only a few years ago, it was commonly seen as part of the remit of the IT department and not a significant enough issue to be discussed by those at the top of an organisation. This often led to disastrous consequences, with no reporting, senior oversight, or incorporation into strategic objectives.

Thankfully, we are now seeing active engagement from those at C-level, often driven by aligned cyber risk committees, and a push for a high ESG rating. We expect this trend to continue to grow in 2025 and beyond.

How to Strengthen Your Defences

Paul McLatchie, Security Strategy Consultant at Wavenet: “Embedding cyber security into board-level discussions isn’t just about mitigating risk—it’s about enabling growth and resilience in a digital-first world. When leaders prioritise security, they empower their organisations to innovate with confidence, knowing that risks are identified, managed, and addressed at the highest level.”

Conclusion

One key takeaway is the importance of preparing for future cyber threats. Research continuously shows that organisations with proactive security strategies consistently prevent more attacks, detect issues faster, suffer fewer breaches, and minimise the damage of incidents more effectively than those that reactively handle security challenges.

In the coming years, being proactive will mean adapting to the evolving threat landscape, including AI-driven cyber attacks, insider threats, and supply chain and API vulnerabilities. With attackers increasingly able to bypass traditional defences, identity security, cloud vulnerabilities, and ransomware evolution will become critical focus areas. Organisations must stay ahead by strengthening monitoring, access controls, and threat detection.

To build a resilient cyber security posture for 2025 and beyond, reaching out to one of our cyber security specialists is an excellent starting point.