What is Cyber Security?

Cyber security refers to every aspect of protecting an organization and its employees and assets against cyber threats. As cyberattacks become more common and sophisticated and corporate networks grow more complex, a variety of cyber security solutions are required to mitigate corporate cyber risk.

Cyber Security Risk Assessment Read the 2025 Security Report

What is Cyber Security? The Different Types of Cybersecurity

The Importance of Cyber Security

Cybersecurity protects IT systems from malicious attacks, allowing businesses to maintain their services and keep sensitive data safe. Without an effective cybersecurity strategy, organizations become easy targets for cybercriminals looking to infiltrate their systems, manipulating them for their own gain.

The importance of cybersecurity in the current threat landscape cannot be understated. Globally, attacks are on the rise. Data from Check Point’s 2025 Cyber Security Report shows the average number of weekly attacks on organizations has reached 1,673. An increase of 44% compared to the year before. This is primarily due to expanded digital footprints, which give attackers more infrastructure to target, and the development of an increasingly sophisticated cybercrime ecosystem.

New technologies enable more productive and profitable work and business models but also increase the risk of cyber threats. Whether it is integrating cloud services and SaaS applications, the Internet of Things and connecting new devices to the network, or the rise of remote work and bring your own device, technological innovations typically expand enterprise attack surfaces.

As organizations increasingly rely on a complex network of connected digital assets to run their operations and deliver services, they must update and upgrade their security posture to remain protected.

The cybercrime ecosystem has changed dramatically in recent years, and it is a matter of “when,” not “if” businesses will become the target of a cyber attack. Companies must contend with cutting-edge, sophisticated attacks from the most advanced hacker groups and state-backed players, as well as a large volume of social engineering and less sophisticated threats. This includes the use of Malware-as-a-Service and other products that dramatically reduce the technical expertise required to launch a cyber attack.

Often, these attacks target as many organizations as possible, looking for victims with weak cybersecurity practices or poorly trained employees using phishing and other techniques. Therefore, businesses need a comprehensive and robust cybersecurity plan that can withstand and respond to evolving threats.

Organizations that fail to understand the importance of cybersecurity are likely to fall victim to an attack. The resulting fallout can be significant, leading to a loss of business from reputational damage and financial repercussions from remediating the attack and potential regulatory fines.

In contrast, robust cybersecurity strategies and infrastructure lead to:

  • Protecting sensitive data and minimizing the risk of data breaches
  • Continuous business services and preventing the disruptions caused by cyber attacks
  • Maintaining compliance with relevant data security regulatory requirements
  • Strong brand reputation for handling customer data properly
  • Securely implementing new and more convenient work models and processes, such as remote work
  • Well-trained employees who understand cyber threats and follow best practices to minimize risk

The Different Types of Cybersecurity

Cyber security is a wide field covering several disciplines. It can be divided into seven main pillars:

1. Network Security

Most attacks occur over the network, and network security solutions are designed to identify and block these attacks. These solutions include data and access controls such as Data Loss Prevention (DLP), IAM (Identity Access Management), NAC (Network Access Control), and NGFW (Next-Generation Firewall) application controls to enforce safe web use policies.

Advanced and multi-layered network threat prevention technologies include IPS (Intrusion Prevention System), NGAV (Next-Gen Antivirus), Sandboxing, and CDR (Content Disarm and Reconstruction). Also important are network analytics, threat hunting, and automated SOAR (Security Orchestration and Response) technologies.

2. Cloud Security

As organizations increasingly adopt cloud computing, securing the cloud becomes a major priority. A cloud security strategy includes cyber security solutions, controls, policies, and services that help to protect an organization’s entire cloud deployment (applications, data, infrastructure, etc.) against attack.

While many cloud providers offer security solutions, these are often inadequate to the task of achieving enterprise-grade security in the cloud. Supplementary third-party solutions are necessary to protect against data breaches and targeted attacks in cloud environments.

3. Endpoint Security

The zero-trust security model prescribes creating micro-segments around data wherever it may be. One way to do that with a mobile workforce is using endpoint security. With endpoint security, companies can secure end-user devices such as desktops and laptops with data and network security controls, advanced threat prevention such as anti-phishing and anti-ransomware, and technologies that provide forensics such as endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions.

4. Mobile Security

Often overlooked, mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones have access to corporate data, exposing businesses to threats from malicious apps, zero-day, phishing, and IM (Instant Messaging) attacks. Mobile security prevents these attacks and secures the operating systems and devices from rooting and jailbreaking. When included with an MDM (Mobile Device Management) solution, this enables enterprises to ensure only compliant mobile devices have access to corporate assets.

5. IoT Security

While using Internet of Things (IoT) devices certainly delivers productivity benefits, it also exposes organizations to new cyber threats. Threat actors seek out vulnerable devices inadvertently connected to the Internet for nefarious uses such as a pathway into a corporate network or for another bot in a global bot network.

IoT security protects these devices with discovery and classification of the connected devices, auto-segmentation to control network activities, and using IPS as a virtual patch to prevent exploits against vulnerable IoT devices. In some cases, the firmware of the device can also be augmented with small agents to prevent exploits and runtime attacks.

6. Application Security

Web applications, like anything else directly connected to the Internet, are targets for threat actors. Since 2007, OWASP has tracked the top 10 threats to critical web application security flaws such as injection, broken authentication, misconfiguration, and cross-site scripting to name a few.

With application security, the OWASP Top 10 attacks can be stopped. Application security also prevents bot attacks and stops any malicious interaction with applications and APIs. With continuous learning, apps will remain protected even as DevOps releases new content.

7. Zero Trust

The traditional security model is perimeter-focused, building walls around an organization’s valuable assets like a castle. However, this approach has several issues, such as the potential for insider threats and the rapid dissolution of the network perimeter.

As corporate assets move off-premises as part of cloud adoption and remote work, a new approach to security is needed. Zero trust takes a more granular approach to security, protecting individual resources through a combination of micro-segmentation, monitoring, and enforcement of role-based access controls.

8. GenAI Security

A newer type of cybersecurity, GenAI security provides protection against the use and integration of generative AI tools. The widespread adoption of generative AI in recent years has produced many new attack vectors for cybercriminals to exploit. These threats have become so significant that OWASP has developed the Gen AI Security Project to provide resources for organizations utilizing the tools. This includes a list of the top 10 risk and mitigations for LLMs and Gen AI Apps.

Given the continued growth in generative AI use, businesses looking to take advantage of this technology must develop specific security practices and guidelines. This includes preventing unauthorized data access when sharing sensitive business information with external models and protections for integrating GenAI models into internally developed applications.

9. SASE

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) combines both networking and security into a single, unified platform based on cloud-delivered services. This streamlines previously disconnected infrastructure, allowing organizations to integrate network and access control capabilities. Placing network controls at the edge rather than centralized infrastructure also provides simpler access controls for any user, regardless of location.

SASE can be thought of as a combination of a Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) with modern security technologies such as:

  • Secure Web Gateway (SWG)
  • Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB)
  • Firewall-as-a-Service (FWaaS)
  • Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA)

By incorporating a range of security capabilities, SASE provides comprehensive protection regardless of network deployment. Plus, as a cloud-native framework, SASE provides organizations with added flexibility and scalability to adapt to their requirements.

10. Managed Security Services (MSS)

Managed Security Services (MSS) is a form of cybersecurity delivered and operated by a third-party provider. By outsourcing cybersecurity, organizations can receive dedicated services from subject matter experts who remain up-to-date on the latest trends and developments in the field. Additionally, businesses do not have to develop their own internal security teams and resources to ensure that protections are in place.

MSS security capabilities vary depending on the vendor but can include real-time monitoring for threats, vulnerability assessments, and remediation processes to limit the impact of an attack. These services are typically provided via consumption-based pricing.

Key Aspects of Cyber Security

While there are many different types of cybersecurity, key aspects and common practices are common across many of them. These include:

Protections

Actively implementing security tools and controls to safeguard systems, networks, and data from cyber threats. This includes a range of potential technologies such as firewalls, antivirus software, encryption, access controls, and many more. In response to more sophisticated threats, cybersecurity protections now often involve multiple layers that introduce redundancies to ensure enterprise IT remains safe if one tool is bypassed.

Monitoring

Observing data from security and networking tools to identify activity indicative of malicious behavior. Many cybersecurity solutions combine data from many sources into a single interface. This prevents data silos and enables decision-making based on all the information available. Modern solutions incorporate machine learning-based analysis to monitor network activity and develop a model for expected safe activities. Once the technology has established a baseline for regular activity, it can send alerts or automate enhanced protections if suspicious actions beyond expected behavior occur.

Incident Response

Responding to attacks in order to minimize their effects and ensure business continuity. Incident response plans outline ahead of time the actions that should be taken in the event of an attack. This includes methods to identify and understand the attack and mitigate its impact. Examples include enhanced access controls in the event of a compromised account or quarantining potential malware on the network.

Training

Educating staff and developing a cybersecurity culture that promotes best practices to prevent future attacks. Training is often based on security awareness and how to identify suspicious communications (e.g., phishing emails or other social engineering vectors).

Risk Management

Identifying, categorizing, and prioritizing potential risks in an enterprise network. Risk management allows organizations to reduce the impact of vulnerabilities while understanding what they could lead to if exploited in a cyberattack. Risk management typically involves risk assessments, threat modeling, vulnerability scans, penetration testing, and update management.

Governance

Defining and documenting cybersecurity policies and practices across the entire organization. Proper governance procedures allow organizations to better track and enforce their security controls. Other important aspects of cybersecurity governance include classifying datasets based on their sensitivity and performing compliance audits to ensure businesses adhere to the relevant regulations.

The Evolution of the Cyber Security Threat Landscape

The cyber threats of today are not the same as even a few years ago. As the cyber threat landscape changes, organizations need protection against external cyber risks and strategic intelligence that tracks cybercriminals’ current and future tools and techniques.

Gen V Attacks

The cyber security threat landscape is continually evolving, and, occasionally, these advancements represent a new generation of cyber threats. To date, we have experienced five generations of cyber threats and solutions designed to mitigate them, including:

  • Gen I (Virus): In the late 1980s, virus attacks against standalone computers inspired the creation of the first antivirus solutions.
  • Gen II (Network): As cyberattacks began to come over the Internet, the firewall was developed to identify and block them.
  • Gen III (Applications): Exploitation of vulnerabilities within applications caused the mass adoption of intrusion prevention systems (IPS)
  • Gen IV (Payload): As malware became more targeted and able to evade signature-based defenses, anti-bot and sandboxing solutions were necessary to detect novel threats.
  • Gen V (Mega): The latest generation of cyber threats uses large-scale, multi-vectors attacks, making advanced threat prevention solutions a priority.

Each generation of cyber threats made previous cyber security solutions less effective or essentially obsolete. Protecting against the modern cyber threat landscape requires Gen V cyber security solutions.

Supply Chain Attacks

Historically, many organizations’ security efforts have been focused on their own applications and systems. By hardening the perimeter and only permitting access to authorized users and applications, they try to prevent cyber threat actors from breaching their networks.

 

Recently, a surge in supply chain attacks has demonstrated the limitations of this approach and cybercriminals’ willingness and ability to exploit them. Incidents like the SolarWinds, Microsoft Exchange Server, and Kaseya hacks demonstrated that trust relationships with other organizations can be a weakness in a corporate cyber security strategy. By exploiting one organization and leveraging these trust relationships, a cyber threat actor can gain access to the networks of all of their customers.

Protecting against supply chain attacks requires a zero trust approach to security. While partnerships and vendor relationships are good for business, third-party users and software should have access limited to the minimum necessary to do their jobs and should be continually monitored.

Ransomware

While ransomware has been around for decades, it only became the dominant form of malware within the last few years. The WannaCry ransomware outbreak demonstrated the viability and profitability of ransomware attacks, driving a sudden surge in ransomware campaigns.

Since then, the ransomware model has evolved drastically. While ransomware used to only encrypt files, it now will steal data to extort the victim and their customers in double and triple extortion attacks. Some ransomware groups also threaten or employ Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks to incentivize victims to meet ransom demands.

The growth of ransomware has also been made possible by the emergence of the Ransomware as a Service (RaaS) model, where ransomware developers will provide their malware to “affiliates” to distribute in exchange for a piece of the ransom. With RaaS, many cybercrime groups have access to advanced malware, making sophisticated attacks more common. As a result, ransomware protection has become an essential component of the enterprise cyber security strategy.

Phishing

Phishing attacks have long been the most common and effective means by which cybercriminals gain access to corporate environments. It is often much easier to trick a user into clicking a link or opening an attachment than it is to identify and exploit a vulnerability within an organization’s defenses.

In recent years, phishing attacks have only grown more sophisticated. While the original phishing scams were relatively easy to detect, modern attacks are convincing and sophisticated to the point where they can be virtually indistinguishable from legitimate emails.

Employee cyber security awareness training is not enough to protect against the modern phishing threat. Managing the risk of phishing requires cyber security solutions that identify and block malicious emails before they even reach a user’s inbox.

Further, organizations must protect their trademarked brands and logos from being abused on phishing sites. Threat actors often fool unsuspecting victims into giving up credentials, credit card details, and other sensitive data, by creating fraudulent website that impersonate a trusted brand. Large enterprises can continuously monitor, detect, and takedown threats like this with a comprehensive external cyber risk management solution.

Malware

The different generations of cyberattacks have been defined mainly by the evolution of malware. Malware authors and cyber defenders are playing a continual cat and mouse game, where attackers try to develop techniques that overcome or bypass the latest in security technology. Often, when they succeed, a new generation of cyberattacks is created.

Modern malware is swift, stealthy, and sophisticated. The detection techniques used by legacy security solutions (such as signature-based detection) are no longer effective, and, often, by the time security analysts have detected and responded to a threat, the damage is already done.

Detection is no longer “good enough” to protect against malware attacks. Mitigating the threat of Gen V malware requires cyber security solutions focused on prevention, stopping the attack before it begins and before any damage is done.

Cyber Security Trends

The prevailing trends in  cybersecurity often stem from a combination of reactions to prominent cyber threats, emerging technologies, and enduring security objectives. These represent some of the key trends and technologies that shape the landscape of cybersecurity in 2025:

  • AI Security– The ascent of AI profoundly influences cybersecurity, encompassing both offensive and defensive aspects. On the offensive front, cyber threat actors have already employed tools like ChatGPT to enhance and streamline cyberattacks, contributing to a notable year-over-year surge in attacks across the board.
  • Hybrid Mesh Firewall Platform– Organizations are progressively adopting hybrid mesh firewall platfrom, integrating diverse firewall types into a unified, centrally managed security architecture. This approach allows organizations to implement firewall solutions tailored to specific environments while simultaneously ensuring centralized oversight, administration, and enforcement of policies across their entire infrastructure.
  • CNAPP – Gartner has coined the term Cloud-Native Application Protection Platform (CNAPP) to characterize security solutions that consolidate the diverse capabilities required for cloud application security into a unified solution. This integration of multiple features into a single solution and dashboard assists in combating security sprawl in the cloud, empowering security teams to efficiently oversee, administer, and safeguard their cloud-based applications.
  • Hybrid Data Centers- While certain organizations have fully migrated their data centers to the cloud, others have adopted cloud computing to enhance their on-premises data centers. A hybrid data center employs orchestration, allowing the seamless movement of data and applications between on-premises and cloud-based infrastructure as required over the network.
  • Comprehensive Protection- Companies now confront a broader spectrum of threats and potential attack vectors than in previous times. Cyber threat actors possess the capability to exploit vulnerabilities in conventional endpoints, mobile devices, IoT systems, and remote work infrastructure. The increased complexity in monitoring and securing a multitude of systems heightens the likelihood of oversight by security teams, potentially granting attackers access to their systems.

The Need for a Consolidated Cyber Security Architecture

In the past, organizations could get by with an array of standalone security solutions designed to address specific threats and use cases. Malware attacks were less common and less sophisticated, and corporate infrastructures were less complex.

Today, cyber security teams are often overwhelmed while trying to manage these complex cyber security architectures. This is caused by a number of factors, including:

  • Sophisticated Attacks: Modern cyberattacks can no longer be detected with legacy approaches to cyber security. More in-depth visibility and investigation is necessary to identify campaigns by advanced persistent threats (APTs) and other sophisticated cyber threat actors.
  • Complex Environments: The modern corporate network sprawls over on-prem infrastructure and multiple cloud environments. This makes consistent security monitoring and policy enforcement across an organization’s entire IT infrastructure much more difficult.
  • Heterogeneous Endpoints: IT is no longer limited to traditional desktop and laptop computers. Technological evolution and bring your own device (BYOD) policies make it necessary to secure a range of devices, some of which the company does not even own.
  • Rise of Remote Work: The response to the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated that remote and hybrid work models were viable for many companies. Now, organizations need solutions that allow them to effectively protect the remote workforce as well as on-site employees.

Trying to solve all of these challenges with an array of disconnected solutions is unscalable and unsustainable. Only by consolidating and streamlining their security architectures can companies effectively manage their cyber security risk.

A new approach to cybersecurity architecture that provides more modern, flexible security capabilities is a hybrid mesh architecture. These solutions are designed to be integrated across different IT environments, from on-prem to the cloud and network edge. Cybersecurity mesh architecture (CSMA) utilizes cloud-based centralized management for all deployments while integrating DevSecOps, application visibility, and advanced threat prevention for IoT and DNS attacks.

Examples of hybrid mesh cybersecurity architecture include Check Point’s Hybrid mesh firewalls that integrate multiple firewall form factors into a single unified management interface to secure hybrid, distributed environments.

Achieving Comprehensive Cybersecurity with Check Point

A modern cybersecurity infrastructure is one that is consolidated and built from solutions that are designed to work together. This requires partnering with a security provider with experience in protecting all of an organization’s assets against a range of cyber threats.

Check Point offers solutions for all of an organization’s security needs, including:

  • Network Security: Check Point Quantum
  • IoT Security: Check Point Quantum IoT Protect
  • Cloud Security: Check Point CloudGuard
  • Application Security: Check Point CloudGuard AppSec
  • Endpoint Security: Check Point Harmony Endpoint
  • Mobile Security: Check Point Harmony Mobile

To learn more about the threats that Check Point solutions can help to protect against, check out the Check Point cyber security report . You’re also welcome to see Check Point’s solutions in action for yourself with a demo and try them in your own environment with a free trial.