Top Cloud Security Threats in 2025 & How to Mitigate Them

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Businesses can now utilize a wide assortment of advanced tools without spending a lot of resources, thanks to cloud technology. You do not have to build systems from scratch. Instead, you just need to look for a provider and integrate their tools with your current systems.

However, there's a catch. Cloud technology increases the attack surface for cybercriminals. As you integrate more cloud-based tools into your systems, cybercriminals gain more accessways to your data. That said, you must know the best ways to defend it. You must know the best cloud security practices.

In this article, we will discuss the top cloud security threats in 2025 and how to mitigate them. Continue reading and start learning.

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1. Supply Chain Breaches

You need to provide vendors with some of your data to integrate their tools with your systems. Remember that you are not the only customer. A lot of other businesses use these cloud tools, too. This is great for cybercriminals.

Instead of hacking multiple businesses' systems one by one, they can attack the cloud tool vendor. With that, they will have access to a treasure trove of data that they can exploit. This type of attack is known as a supply chain breach, one of the biggest cloud security threats.

What is the takeaway here? It does not matter if your systems are very secure. If a cloud tool you integrated with your system is not, your data is still at risk. That said, you must ensure all vendors you work with adhere to strict security standards.

CloudEagle.ai can also help you reduce the amount of third-party tools connected to your system. It helps shrink the attack surface by detecting and eliminating unused and duplicate apps. Furthermore, it can detect "shadow IT" or unauthorized SaaS applications in your organization.

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2. Insider Threats

Not all cloud security threats come from outside your organization. Employees may intentionally or unintentionally make mistakes that can compromise cybersecurity. They could use weak passwords or misuse data, which could lead to data leaks or fines.

Here are the things you can do to prevent these:

A. Require the Use of Passwords

Hackers are able to hijack so many accounts because of lazy password creation. Some users use their birthdays as their passwords or use easy ones like "abcde12345." Cybercriminals can easily guess these.

That said, you should require employees to use strong passwords. So, how can you say that a password is strong? It should be long and use a combination of capital letters, small letters, and numbers. If the tool allows the use of special characters, they should also be included.

The more random the string is, the better. However, employees may not be able to memorize these passwords. So, teach them how to use password managers to store the passwords securely.

B. Limit User Access

Some employees may intentionally or unintentionally misuse data. This can cause legal troubles for your organization. You can limit user access to data based on their role in the organization to prevent that.

Doing so will also reduce the possible impact of a successful account hijacking. The malicious actor will not have access to all sensitive information stored in your system, mitigating cloud security threats caused by internal errors.

C. Zero Trust Architecture

Zero trust architecture is about never trusting anyone automatically and always verifying the user's identity. That allows you to limit what a user can do, which helps prevent cloud security threats. Let's say a hacker has successfully hijacked an account.

Because the system does not trust them automatically, they would not be able to accomplish anything.

Multi-factor authentication is almost always activated in a zero-trust architecture. When a user tries to do something important, like logging in or accessing data, the system will send them a one-time password.

They must enter the OTP to successfully do what they are trying to do. A cybercriminal will not have access to this, as it is sent to the user's device.

If the user is well-informed, they will know that that's a sign someone else is trying to use their account. They can immediately report it and change their credentials. Moreover, the hacker may pretend to be the cloud tool provider and ask the OTP from the user. A well-informed user will know that they should not send it, as it is likely that it is the hacker who is asking.

D. Employee Training

As we have mentioned, employees may be unknowingly doing things that can compromise cybersecurity. Employee training will help prevent cloud security threats caused by human error. That includes the types of scams and attacks, how to detect them, and how not to fall victim to them.

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3. Advanced Persistent Threats

An advanced persistent threat is a long-term attack. The cybercriminal enters the system, but instead of causing immediate damage, they make their presence unknown. That way, they can keep stealing data over time, which could be more beneficial to them.

The challenge in dealing with advanced persistent threats is it is difficult to detect. You need to be very vigilant to know that an outsider is accessing your data. So, what signs should you look for? You can detect APT by looking at data movement. You may detect unusual data movement and multiple logins at unusual times.

Access control is your best defense against APT. It prevents malicious actors from accessing sensitive information and mitigates cloud security threats related to long-term attacks.

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4. Misconfiguration

You need to configure APIs to integrate tools with your native systems. Be careful of misconfiguration, as it can make your systems vulnerable to cyberattacks. So, follow instructions carefully. Furthermore, authenticate and encrypt your connection.

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5. Man In the Middle (MITM) Attacks

A man-in-the-middle attack is a cyberattack where a cybercriminal intercepts network traffic flowing between IT systems. This allows them to steal your data without your knowledge.

These attacks often happen over unsecured networks, making them one of the stealthiest cloud security threats. Therefore, your best tool to prevent this type of attack are VPNs. A VPN like Surfshark encrypts your connection. It prevents malicious actors from intercepting the data being sent between your device or systems and the cloud tools.

Want to know more about VPNs? The cybersecurity experts at Cybernews have written a comprehensive Surfshark review. You can read it to learn more about VPNs and if this specific provider is the right one for your organization.

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6. Ransomware

Cloud ransomware is a type of attack that exploits vulnerabilities in cloud tools to lock your files and folders. The cybercriminal will only unlock them if you pay them ransom, typically in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. You might be inclined to do that because the attacker may also threaten to leak sensitive information.

However, please note that they may not actually unlock the files and folders. Quite the opposite, they may extort you for more money since they know that you can be forced to pay.

Needless to say, you should be prepared for ransomware attacks. You should back up your data regularly. You can create backups stored on the internet and backups stored on a local device. This way, you can ensure that even if cybercriminals lock your files on the cloud, you can still access your data and continue your operations.

Updating your cloud applications will also help prevent ransomware attacks. Updates often contain security patches that fix known vulnerabilities. So, by updating the apps, you reduce the chances of a successful cyberattack.

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Conclusion

Cloud technology made a lot of things easy for businesses. You can access several tools without building them yourself or buying devices to host them. Effectively, that also allows you to buy less powerful computers for the employees.

It comes with a cost, though. Cloud security threats are on the rise, making it easier for cybercriminals to access your data.

Thankfully, you can take steps to protect it. It includes ensuring proper configuration, training your employees, and securing your network. Knowing these best practices helps you avoid financial and reputational damages caused by cyberattacks.

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