Global Cybersecurity Threats

Cybersecurity threats can originate from any geographic region, can affect any geographic region, can achieve relative anonymity on the global infrastructure known as the internet, and can have varying degrees of sophistication and motivation.

Geographically, cybersecurity threats and associated threat actors are more prevalent in some regions than others. Threats with Middle Eastern origins include rogue and/or state-sponsored actors who leverage capabilities, either indigenously produced or stolen, against global targets.

The motivation of these threat actors is varied, from theft of intellectual property for their own national purposes, to using threats to send political or social messages, to theft for the purposes of financial gain, to even terrorism. Cybersecurity threats from Russia are generally characterized as sophisticated and stealthy, while threats from other European nations vary as determined by their national policies, political pressures, and impacts to their populations.