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Cyberattacks grew in both frequency and scale in 2025. And there’s little reason to expect much relief in 2026. Emerging technologies such as agentic AI and quantum computing are expanding the playing field, empowering defenders and adversaries alike. Ultimately, humans remain both the weakest link in cybersecurity and its most powerful line of defense. Through all of this, there are emerging trends to watch out for in 2026 that may fuel cybercrime over the next 12 months.
Below we will get into those cyber security trends to prepare for in 2026. If you are looking for a defense against cybercrime, do not hesitate to reach out to MSEDP! We have the cyber security services to keep your business safe and secure. And with our team at the helm, you will stay ahead of the upcoming trends!
Attacks that involve encrypting or otherwise locking away critical business data and demanding payment for its release continue to rise. All of which are indicators that suggest they will grow even more sophisticated in 2026. The barrier to entry for cybercriminals is steadily eroding, driven by the rapid expansion of ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) ecosystems that allow even minimally skilled attackers to launch highly effective campaigns using turnkey tools, customer support, and profit-sharing models.
At the same time, advances in artificial intelligence are amplifying the effectiveness of these attacks. Deepfake audio and video, as well as AI-generated phishing content, are making social engineering far more convincing, enabling attackers to impersonate executives, vendors, or trusted partners with unprecedented realism. Thus bypassing traditional human safeguards. These techniques dramatically increase the likelihood of successful initial compromise and subsequent lateral movement within an organization.
Compounding the problem, the emergence of new privacy-focused and harder-to-trace cryptocurrencies is simplifying the financial side of cybercrime. These digital currencies make it easier for attackers to transfer, launder, and ultimately spend extorted funds while minimizing exposure to law enforcement or regulatory scrutiny. Together, these trends are transforming ransomware from a niche criminal activity into a highly professionalized, scalable, and resilient business model. A model that organizations must assume will remain a persistent and escalating threat throughout 2026 and beyond.
Despite major advances in cyber security technology, human beings remain the most vulnerable component of any security infrastructure. For cybercriminals, manipulating human behavior, whether it is through deception, coercion, bribery, or blackmail, is often far more effective than attempting to defeat hardened technical controls. Stolen or willingly surrendered credentials continue to provide attackers with the easiest path into otherwise well-defended systems, allowing them to bypass layers of security with minimal resistance.
As these tactics become more refined and personalized and then enhanced by AI-driven reconnaissance and social engineering, organizations are being forced to rethink how they address human risk. In response, businesses are expected to invest far more heavily in comprehensive security awareness initiatives. This includes ongoing employee education, realistic simulations of phishing and other social engineering attacks, and role-specific training that reflects the real-world threats employees are most likely to encounter.
Beyond training, leading organizations will focus on cultivating a culture of shared responsibility for security. This means normalizing cautious behavior, encouraging employees to report suspicious activity without fear of blame, and embedding security considerations into everyday workflows. In 2026 and beyond, companies that treat their workforce as an active line of defense rather than a liability to be managed will be far better positioned to withstand increasingly sophisticated cyber threats.
AI agents are rapidly emerging as the new frontline in the cybercrime battlefield. Unlike traditional automated tools, these agents can operate autonomously, adapt to changing conditions, and seamlessly interact with third-party services and digital environments. For attackers, this unlocks an unprecedented level of scale and sophistication. AI agents can continuously probe networks for vulnerabilities, test defenses in real time, and refine their tactics based on observed responses. They can also orchestrate highly targeted, evolving social engineering campaigns. Doing so by adjusting language, timing, and impersonation strategies on the fly to exploit human trust and organizational blind spots.
At the same time, these same capabilities offer defenders a powerful new arsenal. Security teams can deploy AI agents to monitor systems continuously, correlate signals across vast data sets, and respond to threats autonomously. They can complete these tasks faster than human analysts could intervene. Defensive agents can isolate compromised systems, roll back malicious changes, and even predict likely attack paths before they are exploited.
In 2026, the widespread adoption of AI agents represents the latest and most consequential escalation in the cybersecurity arms race. As both criminals and enterprises race to deploy increasingly autonomous systems, the margin for error narrows and the pace of attacks accelerates. Success will depend not only on having advanced tools, but on how effectively organizations govern, train, and integrate these agents. In this new landscape, speed, adaptability, and decision-making autonomy will define who gains the upper hand.
Deepfaked audio and video are opening dangerous new avenues for cyber attackers, enabling them to convincingly impersonate trusted individuals such as executives, colleagues, or business partners in order to gain access to secure systems or authorize sensitive actions. These synthetic media techniques allow criminals to replicate not just a person’s appearance or voice, but also their speech patterns, tone, and mannerisms. Altogether making fraudulent communications far more persuasive than your traditional phishing emails or text messages.
There have already been documented cases in which employees were deceived into transferring large sums of money after receiving spoofed phone calls or video messages that appeared to come directly from their manager or senior leadership. As the underlying technology continues to improve and becomes increasingly indistinguishable from authentic human interaction, such attacks are likely to grow both in frequency and financial impact.
Compounding the risk, deepfake-enabled attacks exploit organizational trust and urgency, often pressuring victims to act quickly or bypass standard verification processes. In the years ahead, businesses will need to assume that seeing or hearing a familiar face or voice is no longer sufficient proof of identity. Mitigating this threat will require stronger verification protocols, multi-person approval for high-risk actions, and employee training designed specifically to recognize and respond to AI-driven impersonation attempts.
Quantum computing promises to revolutionize entire industries by solving complex problems in seconds that would take today’s most powerful classical computers centuries to complete. Breakthroughs in areas such as materials science, drug discovery, logistics, and financial modeling could reshape how organizations innovate and operate. Yet this same leap in computational power also presents a profound challenge for cybersecurity.
Many of the encryption methods that currently protect sensitive data and digital communications rely on mathematical problems that are effectively unsolvable with classical computing. Quantum computers, however, threaten to render these protections obsolete. Cybercriminals are already anticipating this shift by harvesting and stockpiling encrypted data today. Ultimately betting on a future in which quantum capabilities will allow them to decrypt it retroactively.
As a result, 2026 is likely to mark a critical transition period. Organizations will need to assess where quantum vulnerabilities exist within their systems, data stores, and third-party dependencies. On top of that, they will need to begin migrating toward quantum-resistant cryptographic standards. A delay in this transition increases the risk that sensitive information compromised years from now could expose secrets thought to be safely locked away. Preparing for a post-quantum world will require foresight, investment, and coordination. However, waiting until quantum threats are fully realized may already be too late. Get an IT Team like MSEDP on your side to serve as your protective shield!
Regulators and lawmakers have consistently struggled to keep pace with the speed and sophistication of modern cybercrime. The challenge is not primarily about punishing criminals, who rarely operate within the reach of national laws. However, it is more about compelling organizations to take stronger responsibility for safeguarding the sensitive data they collect and manage. As cyber incidents grow in scale and impact, governments are increasingly shifting their focus toward accountability, transparency, and resilience at the corporate level.
Recent regulatory efforts reflect this shift. Measures such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s enhanced cyber disclosure requirements are designed to force greater transparency by requiring companies to formally document, assess, and report material cyber incidents. Similarly, there is a European Union’s directive that significantly broadens the range of organizations subject to cybersecurity obligations. This directive mandates improved risk management practices, incident response capabilities, and operational resilience across critical and non-critical sectors alike.
While these frameworks aim to raise the baseline level of security and preparedness, their overall real-world effectiveness remains uncertain. Compliance does not automatically translate into stronger defenses. On top of that, there is a risk that some organizations will treat these requirements as a box-checking exercise instead of a catalyst for meaningful change. As cybercriminals continue to innovate and industrialize their operations, the true test for regulators will be whether these measures can drive sustained improvements in security maturity. If not, data theft and extortion will continue to outpace the laws designed to contain them throughout 2026 and beyond.
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