Top News

Year-Ender 2025’s Wake-Up Call: As 2025 comes to an end, it leaves behind more than just headlines. The year leaves a clear warning. This year, a series of major security and data breaches shook companies, governments, and everyday users alike. What once felt like distant cyber threats suddenly became personal, with leaked data, locked systems, and broken trust making the risks impossible to ignore.

From global companies to small businesses, no one was completely secure. The enterprise arm of global cybersecurity solutions provider Quick Heal Technologies Limited, Seqrite, released the India Cyber ​​Threat Report 2026. The report claimed that India recorded more than 265 million cyberattacks in 2025.

These numbers were not just data in a report. They reflected real attacks throughout the year. In May 2025, after India launched Operation Sindoor against terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in response to the Pahalgam attack, a wave of cyberattacks followed. Indian government platforms and critical infrastructure systems were targeted, showing how real-world conflicts quickly moved into the digital space.

June 2025 brought the biggest shock, when over 16 billion login details were leaked across 30 datasets. Accounts linked to Apple, Facebook, Google, GitHub, Telegram, and government portals were affected. Trust slipped further after a ChatGPT- Mixpanel breach, while BSNL faced a double attack that disrupted services. Adding to the concern, the President’s website was hit by a DDoS attack that lasted nearly 19 hours and aimed to shut it down.

These incidents did more than expose weak systems. They revealed a growing gap in real-world cybersecurity skills. As attackers became smarter and faster, defenders were forced to rethink old methods. 2025 didn’t just change how we view online safety. It became a wake-up call that redefined what it truly means to be cyber-ready.

Commenting on the changing cybersecurity landscape, Ravi Kaklasaria, CEO and Co-Founder of edForce, said that 2025 has exposed serious gaps in organizational readiness. He said, “2025 has been a wake-up call for every organization. The breaches we’re seeing are not failures of technology, but failures of preparedness.

Adding further, Ravi Kaklasaria stated that Cybersecurity today is deeply intertwined with AI, cloud, and automation, and that requires an entirely new skill mindset. Organizations must move beyond checkbox training and invest in continuous, hands-on upskilling that mirrors real-world attack scenarios. Cyber ​​resilience will belong to those who treat skills as critical infrastructure, not a one-time initiative.”

AI Is Redefining The Threat Landscape

AI is changing the game in cybersecurity, turning it into a high-speed race between attackers and defenders. In 2025, IBM’s Cost of a Data Breach Report showed that the average cost of a breach fell to $4.44 million, a 9% drop, thanks to AI helping companies spot and contain attacks faster.

On average, AI users saved $2.22 million per incident. But AI is not without risks. Many organizations are using it without proper controls. About 86 percent of leaders reported incidents where AI was used without access controls, and 63 percent lacked proper governance. This has made phishing, ransomware, and even deepfake attacks faster and more dangerous. Experts warn that cybercrime damages could reach $10.5 trillion this year, making smart AI defenses more important than ever.

Highlighting the growing impact of cyber breaches, Mr. Nikhil Jhanji, Principal Product Manager at Privy by IDfy, said that data leaks in 2025 are no longer limited to compromised systems. “In 2025, we have observed that data breaches are increasingly becoming PII calamities rather than isolated security incidents. What gets exposed is not just databases, but identities, financial histories, behavioral signals, and long forgotten consent trails. The core issue is excessive data collection and retention. When breaches happen, attackers inherit years of personal data, turning every incident into immediate regulatory, legal, and trust fallout.”

How High-Profile Cyber ​​Data Breaches Changed Security Skill Requirements

The high-profile cyber data breaches in 2025 forced organizations to rethink their cybersecurity skill requirements. Companies realized that traditional network security was no longer enough, as threats became more complex and widespread. The focus shifted to advanced areas such as cloud security, AI-driven threat detection, and zero-trust frameworks.

As cyberattacks grow more complex, companies must rethink their security strategies. Mr. Pankaj Tripathi, CEO & Founder of Vernost, stressed, “In 2025, cybersecurity attacks have become smarter, faster, and increasingly AI-driven. Threat actors are no longer just targeting systems, they’re targeting trust, identity, and business continuity. At Vernost, we believe resilience comes from proactive security: continuous monitoring, zero-trust architecture, and real-time threat response. The organizations that invest in prevention today will be the ones that stay protected tomorrow.”

A sharp rise in supply-chain attacks and ransomware incidents also increased demand for expertise in digital forensics, risk assessment, and rapid incident response. These breaches exposed serious skill gaps across security teams, making it clear that tools alone cannot prevent attacks. As a result, organizations began investing heavily in continuous upskilling, encouraging closer collaboration between IT and security teams, and adopting security-first approaches across their digital transformation strategies.

Conclusion:

Major cyber and data breaches have shown that cybersecurity is no longer just about tools or IT teams. As attacks become more advanced, organizations need skills in cloud security, AI-based threat detection, incident response, and data protection. The focus is shifting from reacting to attacks to staying prepared at all times. Continuous upskilling, hands-on training, and better collaboration across teams are now essential. Companies that invest in the right skills will be better equipped to protect data, maintain customer trust, and stay resilient in a fast-changing threat landscape.