A cyberattack is a deliberate and unauthorized attempt to exploit or disrupt computer systems, networks, or devices. It involves taking advantage of vulnerabilities to gain unauthorized access, steal sensitive information, cause damage, or disrupt normal operations. Cyberattacks can target individuals, businesses, governments, and even critical infrastructure systems.
Cyberattacks try to access, change, or destroy data. They also disrupt services or pivot to higher-value targets. The sections below go beyond definitions. They show early signals, fast responses, and where a platform adds value.
Attackers include criminals, insiders, and nation-state groups. Motives range from profit to espionage. They strike across email, web, identity, network, cloud, and IoT. Most incidents chain several steps, so a single alert rarely tells the whole story.
Think in terms of attacker progress, not isolated anomalies. Early steps steal credentials. Next comes privilege escalation, lateral movement, and data staging. Good detection connects these behaviors across domains and ranks what is most urgent.
Modern environments are hybrid. Signals live in different tools and formats. You need correlation that stitches network, identity, and cloud into one narrative.
Watch prioritized cases built by AI-powered NDR
Attackers go after money, access, or disruption. They chain steps across email, web, identity, network, and cloud to reach those goals. A single alert rarely tells the whole story, so think in terms of sequences or flows, not events. When you see progress toward privilege or exfiltration, act fast and record outcomes to refine detections.
Cyberattacks manifest in various forms, each with its own distinct methods and objectives. Let's delve into some of the common types:
Malware refers to malicious software designed to disrupt, damage, or gain unauthorized access to computer systems. Examples of malware include viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and ransomware. Malware can spread through infected email attachments, compromised websites, or unauthorized downloads.
Phishing attacks typically involve fraudulent emails or messages that impersonate legitimate organizations. Their aim is to deceive individuals into divulging sensitive information like passwords, credit card details, or social security numbers. Phishing attacks rely on social engineering techniques and can have severe consequences for unsuspecting victims.
Denial of Service attacks aim to render a computer system or network unavailable to its intended users by overwhelming it with a flood of illegitimate requests. This can lead to a loss of service, financial losses, and reputational damage for businesses and organizations.
> Learn more about DoS Attacks
A man-in-the-middle attack (MITM attack) is a cyberattack where an unauthorized individual intercepts and alters communication between two parties without their knowledge. This allows the attacker to eavesdrop on or manipulate the data being exchanged.
Before diving into each category, use this table for quick triage. It groups attacks by the attacker’s goal and highlights the first signals that matter.
Point tools see fragments. Attackers chain steps across domains. You need correlation that shows the story and ranks risk by impact. That is why many teams add NDR to endpoint and SIEM for east-west and identity-to-network context.
With AI agents handling triage, stitching, and prioritization, analysts see what is real and urgent. That shortens time to verify and speeds decisions.
Now that detection is framed, turn guidance into action with short, repeatable playbooks.
Cyberattacks have wide-ranging consequences for individuals, businesses, and government organizations. They can result in financial losses, compromised personal information, damage to critical infrastructure, and disruptions to essential services. The reputational damage caused by a successful cyberattack can have long-term effects on an organization's trust and credibility.
Cybercriminals target various entities, including individuals, businesses, and government organizations.
Individuals are vulnerable to cyberattacks through various means such as phishing emails, social media scams, or malware-infected websites. Cyberattacks can compromise personal information, financial data, and private communications, leading to identity theft or financial fraud.
Both small businesses and large corporations face significant risks from cyberattacks. Data breaches can result in the loss of sensitive customer information, financial theft, or intellectual property theft. The cost of recovering from a cyberattack can be substantial, including expenses related to legal matters, customer compensation, and damage control efforts.
Government entities, including federal agencies and local authorities, are attractive targets for cybercriminals seeking political or financial gain. Breaches of government systems can compromise sensitive data, disrupt essential services, or jeopardize national security.
When minutes matter, keep it simple. Match the attack, execute the next three actions, confirm the owner, and capture lessons to harden controls.
See how attackers chain steps across domains in modern attack techniques.
Most teams start with identity and system hygiene, add phishing defenses, then harden access and recovery.
A common sequence: passwords, patching, training, social-engineering controls, careful email and web use, 2FA, backups.
This progression follows coverage, clarity, and control.
Use strong and unique passwords
Keep software and systems updated
Educate yourself and others
Recognize social engineering techniques
Exercise caution with suspicious emails and websites
Utilize two-factor authentication (2FA)
Regularly back up your data
To effectively combat the escalating threat of cyberattacks, advanced security measures are indispensable. Vectra AI leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to detect and respond to cyber threats in real-time.
By analyzing network traffic, user behavior, and the overall security landscape, Vectra AI can identify anomalies, detect potential breaches, and provide timely alerts. This enables organizations to proactively defend against cyberattacks.
Through continuous monitoring and threat intelligence, the Vectra AI platform empowers organizations to enhance their cybersecurity posture and stay one step ahead of cybercriminals.
A cyberattack is when someone tries to break into computers, networks, or accounts without permission to steal data, disrupt services, or cause harm. Many cyberattacks use several techniques together to increase their impact.
Phishing, ransomware, credential attacks, web injection, DNS abuse, DDoS, insider activity, and IoT abuse. Many incidents mix several of these.
Yes. Attackers use AI to make phishing more convincing, create deepfakes, and evade detection models. Defenses should include securing machine learning pipelines and verifying media sources before acting.
Look for unusual peer-to-peer connections, unexpected service creation, Kerberos authentication anomalies, or new administrator accounts. Correlating identity activity with east-west network traffic can reveal lateral movement before it spreads.
Network Detection and Response (NDR) gives visibility into traffic patterns and identity activity that endpoint tools often miss. It correlates events across network, cloud, and identity domains to reveal attacker movement and speed up detection and response.
You can compare Cybersecurity NDR solutions by combining independent research with hands-on testing. Start with analyst reports and peer review sites to shortlist options, then run live demos and POVs that show real detections, attack timelines, and response workflows to evaluate accuracy, speed, and ease of use.