SpyCloud Unveils Top 10 Cybersecurity Predictions Poised To Disrupt Identity Security In 2026

-Content by CyberNewswire-

SpyCloud, the leader in identity threat protection, today released its report, The Identity Security Reckoning: 2025 Lessons, 2026 Predictions, outlining 10 of the top trends that will shape the cyber threat landscape in the coming year.

The predictions, based on observed and analysed cybercrime activities from the past year and SpyCloud’s proprietary research and recaptured identity intelligence, shed light on the evolving tactics of cybercriminals and the identity-based threats security teams need to anticipate.

“Identity misuse is threaded throughout nearly every trend outlined in the report, from malware-driven session hijacking to synthetic identities and exposed non-human credentials,” said Damon Fleury, SpyCloud’s Chief Product Officer. “As attackers exploit this expanding footprint, organisations will be forced to rethink how they detect, respond to and prevent identity threats across their entire ecosystem.”

SpyCloud’s Top 10 Identity-Driven Threats That Will Shape 2026

1. The cybercriminal supply chain continues to transform: Malware-as-a-Service and Phishing-as-a-Service will remain core enablers of cybercrime, but 2026 will bring new “specialised roles” in the criminal economy that will make it easier for bad actors to operate at scale and with startup-like efficiency. These specialised roles include infrastructure providers, tool developers, access brokers, and even support services.
2. Threat actor communities will fragment, evolve and get younger: Law enforcement crackdowns and platform policy changes will continue pushing threat actors from darknet forums to mainstream apps. But perhaps more alarming is the influx of teen cybercriminals experimenting with plug-and-play attack kits for clout, profit, or curiosity. 2025 was also a big year for exposing Chinese cybercrime tactics, a trend expected to continue in 2026 alongside the rise of Latin America as a new hotbed for fraud and organised threat activity.
3. The non-human identity (NHI) explosion will fuel hidden risks: Driven at least in part by the proliferation of AI tools and services, APIs, OAuth tokens, and service accounts, known as NHIs, are proliferating across cloud environments. These NHI’s often lack protections found more commonly in human-based credentials, like multi-factor authentication (MFA) and device fingerprinting. As these machine credentials quietly amass privileged access to critical systems, they create stealthy entry points for attackers and serious compliance gaps for enterprises.
4. Insider threats will be fueled by M&A, malware, and missteps: In 2026, security teams will grapple with risks from compromised users, employment fraud from nation-state bad actors, and M&A activity that introduces inherited vulnerabilities and identity access sprawl. The “human element” will continue to be a weak point in proactive defence.
5. AI-enabled cybercrime has only just gotten started: In 2026, AI will increasingly be used by bad actors to craft better malware, more believable phishing, and quickly triage vulnerable environments, increasing the overall risk to enterprises posed by this rapidly advancing technology
6. Attackers will find creative ways around MFA: This year, SpyCloud found that 66% of malware infections bypassed endpoint protections. Expect to see more trending methods used to bypass MFA and other session defences: residential proxies to spoof location authentication measures, anti-detect browsers to bypass device fingerprinting, Adversary-in-the-Middle (AitM) attacks used to phish credentials and steal valid cookies.
7. Vendors and contractors will test enterprise defences: Vendors and contractors continue to be a preferred attack vector to access enterprises. In 2026, organisations will need to treat third-party and contractor exposed identities with the same rigor as employee accounts, especially in tech, telecom, and software supply chains where threats are most acute and have a broader impact.
8. Synthetic identities will get smarter and harder to spot: Criminals are assembling fake identities from real, stolen data and then enhancing them with AI-generated personas and deepfakes to defeat verification checks. With banks already flagging synthetic identity fraud as a top concern, expect this to become a front-page issue in 2026.
9. Distractions like combolists and “megabreaches” will obscure real threats: Expect more viral headlines touting “billions of records leaked” even as many stem from recycled data found in combolists or infostealer logs; collections of already-exposed records repackaged by criminals to generate hype, fear, and clout. While older, unremediated data can still cause risk for organisations, these events often trigger widespread concern and divert attention away from more immediate, actionable threats.
10. Cybersecurity teams will restructure to tackle new threat realities: As identity security becomes the common denominator across fraud, cyber, and risk workflows, teams will prioritise cross-functional collaboration, automation, and holistic identity intelligence to drive faster, more accurate decisions.

“With the speed that technology moves, cybercrime evolves in lockstep and it’s equal parts fascinating to watch and challenging to keep up with,” said Trevor Hilligoss, SpyCloud’s Head of Security Research.”

“The commoditisation and influence of the dark web will continue to complicate things, making 2026 another nonstop year for defenders. Understanding the TTPs of these cybercriminals and gaining insights into the data they find most valuable will help these defenders continue to stay one step ahead and positively impact these efforts in years to come. But you can be sure we’ll track these shifts in real time and enable our customers and partners to effectively combat identity misuse in all of its forms.”

-This is a paid press release published via CyberNewswire-