Cyberattacks aren’t like what you see in the movies, there’s no flashing skull, no instant lockout, no dramatic countdown clock. In reality, most modern attacks are slow, calculated, and silent. And by the time you discover them, a lot of damage has likely already been done.
It Starts with a Door In, Often Through Someone You Trust
The majority of attacks we see don’t start with your systems at all, they start with someone else’s.
Threat actors are increasingly gaining access through third parties: your vendors, your customers, or your business partners. These relationships are built on trust, and attackers exploit that trust to trick your employees.
The entry point could be an email that looks legitimate but contains a malicious link. It could be a fake login page prompting someone to enter their credentials. Or it could be an attachment disguised as a document from a known contact.
Once someone clicks, opens, or logs in, that’s the compromise.
Quietly Watching: The Recon Phase
Cybercriminals don’t announce their presence. Instead, they quietly explore.
We’ve seen threat actors sit inside an organization’s systems for months, sometimes as long as six months, without being detected. During that time, they gather everything they can:
- Employee information
- Financial records
- Internal communications
- Cyber insurance policies
- Incident response plans
Yes, they’ll even read your response plan so they can anticipate your next move. The more they know, the more leverage they have when it’s time to make demands.
The Objective: Maximum Leverage, Maximum Profit
The goal is almost always financial. But the method varies depending on the group.
Some groups focus on ransomware, locking your systems and demanding payment for a decryption key. Others go for data exfiltration, stealing sensitive information and threatening to publish it unless you pay. Increasingly, we see a combination of both.
Some groups will immediately post stolen data on public leak sites to pressure you. Others will negotiate, and in some cases, we’ve seen ransom demands successfully reduced by 60%. But the bottom line is this: you’re dealing with organized, experienced criminals who know how to hurt your business.
Know Your Adversary: Threat Actors Have Patterns
These groups aren’t random. In fact, many of them are predictable. Experienced security teams can often identify which group is behind an attack based on how they behave:
- Do they typically steal data or just encrypt?
- Are they known to post information publicly?
- Are they open to negotiation?
- Do they operate quickly, or do they lurk?
This knowledge is critical in shaping how your organization responds during and after an attack.
How to Prepare for the Inevitable
No organization is immune to a cyberattack. But how you prepare, and how you respond, can make all the difference.
Start by understanding your risk, educating your team, and building a layered security approach. Just as important: have an incident response plan that’s not only written down, but practiced.
If you’re unsure whether your security measures are enough, or if you haven’t updated your incident response plan recently, talk to Aldridge today. We’ll work with you to understand your risk, improve your defenses, and be ready when the time comes.
You can also download our free Security Incident Response Template to make sure your plan covers what really happens during an attack.