Why machine identity management should be your priority in 2023

There is no doubt that the pressure on security teams is increasing. From geopolitical tensions and nation-state attacks to the growing complexity of the cloud, security professionals have had their work cut out to keep organizations safe.

But, with 2023 likely to bring another economic downturn, the security industry will reassess where to prioritize a limited budget while looking to do more with less.

And economic hardship will be felt not only by security professionals, but also by hackers. Many might be forced to consider revenue generators, such as exploiting machine identity management, as old techniques such as ransomware may fall flat due to corporate belt-tightening. .

As threat actors find new ways to exploit vulnerabilities and inflict more damage, such as targeting critical infrastructure, robust cybersecurity, especially machine identity management, is essential.

Here are my best predictions for the coming year.

2023 will tell the story of two CISOs

In 2023, external influences and harsher economic climates will strain the security industry: some CISOs will shine, while others will play a supporting role. With geopolitics on shaky ground, cybersecurity has never been more important. But the economic downturn will squeeze security budgets in Europe and the United States, and CISOs will have to do more with less. This will attract the attention of security officials.

Forward-thinking CISOs who embrace decentralized security decision-making will play a greater role and ultimately lead their organizations ahead of the pack. This means optimizing what they already have and collaborating across business functions to maintain a competitive advantage.

On the other hand, some CISOs will be more cautious, falling back on the fact that they have limited budgets and relying on the tactics they've deployed over the past decade. This will cost businesses dearly, as breaches will have huge financial implications in a turbulent economic climate.

Cash cow ransomware may stop mooing in 2023

Hackers may be forced to start looking for other sources of income, such as selling stolen machine identities.

It's not just governments, citizens and businesses that will feel the effects of the economic downturn in 2023; pirates will be forced to change tactics. For example, with fewer companies able to afford to pay ransoms, we could see ransomware diminish as an attack vector.

This will emphasize other sources of income for hackers, such as the lucrative sale of stolen machine identities, such as code-signing certificates. We've already seen a high price for them in dark web markets, and groups like Lapsus$ regularly use them to launch devastating attacks.

So their value will only increase this year, and we will see dark web markets explode with sales of stolen machine identities.

All eggs in a cloud basket will concentrate risk and spoil agility

In 2023, the smart game to protect budgets will be to increase agility and spread costs across multiple clouds. However, some CFOs and CIOs will be drawn to the low-cost, low-stress single cloud option and put all their eggs in one basket.

This concentrates risk and presents opportunity for attackers as security teams become familiar with cloud-native technologies that developers have deployed since the pandemic accelerated cloud usage. It also wastes the agility and speed that a multi-cloud strategy provides.

Critical infrastructure in the...