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Threat Actors Are Moving Faster Than Ever: SonicWall Warns SMBs and Highlights the Importance of Not Fighting Alone

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1 year ago

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61% of the time hackers exploit new vulnerabilities within 2 days – compared to what can take the average organization 120-150* days to apply a patchSonicWall detected 210,258 ‘never-before-seen’ malware variants – 637 each dayRansomware intensifies in North America (+8%) and explodes in LATAM (+259%)Malware trended up 8% YoY, including a massive 92% spike in May aloneIoT attacks (+124%) and encrypted threats (+93%) continue to climb globallyIdentity, cloud, and credential compromise account for 85% actionable alerts

MILPITAS, Calif., Feb. 25, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — SonicWall today released the 2025 SonicWall Annual Cyber Threat Report, revealing a continued onslaught of cyberattacks on small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs). Once exclusively targeting large enterprises, threat actors now use more efficient targeting and AI-driven attacks making it clear that SMBs and organizations of all sizes can’t fight this battle alone. To protect their revenue and brand integrity, businesses can rely on the expertise of a trusted Managed Service Provider (MSP), gaining advanced threat intelligence and proactive defense strategies to stay ahead of evolving cyber threats.

SMBs are facing a storm of cyber threats, as attackers leverage automation, AI, and advanced evasion techniques to evade traditional defenses. These evolving tactics make it nearly impossible for businesses to defend themselves without dedicated cybersecurity expertise. As attack surfaces expand and the time to exploit vulnerabilities shrinks, SMBs must prioritize proactive security measures.

“Threat actors are moving at an unprecedented pace, exploiting new vulnerabilities within days, while we’re observing that it takes some organizations 120 to 150 days to apply a critical patch,” said President and CEO Bob VanKirk. “Now more than ever, businesses need the expertise of an MSP/MSSP backed by with real-time threat monitoring and SOC capabilities. Legacy security solutions are no longer enough, businesses must adopt a new mindset to stay ahead of modern cyber threats.”

The cyber threat report provides insight, in particular for SMBs, and highlights why businesses of all sizes shouldn’t go it alone in the fight against cybercrime. SonicWall is aggressively growing our network of managed service providers to defend SMBs against the ever-evolving threat actors.

“With the increasing speed and sophistication of cyber threats, we needed a partner that could provide real-time threat intelligence and proactive security,” said Nick Sabatini, Vice President of Managed Services at Ubeo. “Ubeo is focused on best-in-class partners that bring innovation and flexibility to meet our customers’ needs, and SonicWall’s SOC services allow us to deliver 24/7 monitoring and rapid threat response, ensuring our customers stay protected without the burden of managing security alone. Their expertise and advanced security solutions empower us to protect businesses against today’s relentless cyberattacks. We’ve seen firsthand how SonicWall’s expanded portfolio and global security reach have helped us better protect our clients and respond to the increasingly sophisticated threat landscape.”

Cyber Threats Surge, Businesses at Risk

SonicWall intelligence found that on average, companies were under critical attack – the type of attack most likely to deplete business resources – for 68 days in 2024. Ransomware continues to rise, increasing 8% in North America and surging 259% in Latin America. Malware spiked 8% year-over-year, while IoT attacks jumped 124% and encrypted threats climbed 93%.

The 2025 SonicWall Cyber Threat Report provides insight on a range of threats, including:

AI Automation Tools Lower Barrier for Entry While Increasing Attack Complexity – Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF) attacks became a critical cybersecurity concern in 2024, marked by a dramatic 452% increase compared to 2023.Staggering Spike in Business Email Compromise (BEC) Attacks – Nearly one-third of all reported cyber events were BEC attacks, up dramatically from only 9% in 2023.The Escalation of Ransomware Attacks in 2024 – Ransomware was far and away the biggest threat to the healthcare industry, utilized in 95% of all breaches in this sector.Living Off the Land Binaries (LOLBins): No Laughing Matter – LOLBins are integral to fileless malware campaigns, where attackers utilize native system tools to avoid leaving traditional artifacts, thus evading detection by conventional signature-based solutions.

“The data in this year’s threat report underscores a disturbing reality: threat actors are exploiting vulnerabilities at lightning speed, while organizations take far too long to respond,” said SonicWall Executive Director of Threat Research Douglas McKee. “Our findings indicate that organizations struggle to keep their businesses safe from the ever-present cyber threats, and the data that we gather paints a clear picture of the growing challenges they face. From ransomware surges to the rapid rise in IoT and encrypted threats, businesses are increasingly at risk.”

Patented RTDMI Discovered ‘Never-Before-Seen’ Malware Variants

SonicWall’s patented Real-Time Deep Memory Inspection® (RTDMI®) technology identified a total of 210,258 ‘never-before-seen’ malware variants. The threat landscape remains complex, with over 630 strains of new variants discovered each day.

To learn more about SonicWall and get the complete 2025 SonicWall Cyber Threat Report, please visit www.sonicwall.com/threat-report.

*As cited in Security Intelligence: How Do You Measure the Success of Your Patch Management Efforts?

About SonicWall Capture Labs
SonicWall Capture Labs threat researchers gather, analyze and vet cross-vector threat information from the SonicWall Capture Threat network, consisting of global devices and resources, including more than 1 million security sensors in nearly 215 countries and territories. SonicWall Capture Labs, which pioneered the use of artificial intelligence for threat research and protection over a decade ago, performs rigorous testing and evaluation on this data, establishes reputation scores for email senders and content, and identifies new threats in real-time.

About SonicWall
SonicWall is a cybersecurity forerunner with more than 30 years of expertise and is recognized as a leading partner-first company. With the ability to build, scale and manage security across the cloud, hybrid and traditional environments in real-time, SonicWall provides seamless protection against the most evasive cyberattacks across endless exposure points for increasingly remote, mobile and cloud-enabled users. With its own threat research center, SonicWall can quickly and economically provide purpose-built security solutions to enable any organization—enterprise, government agencies and SMBs—around the world. For more information, visit www.sonicwall.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

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SOURCE SONICWALL INC

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Intesa Communications Group Named ‘Customers First’ Winner in San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce 2026 Small Business Awards

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July 21, 2026

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The award-winning, women-owned San Diego public relations and government affairs firm was recognized for exceptional client service that has fueled 14 years of growth

SAN DIEGO, July 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Intesa Communications Group, a leading San Diego public relations and government affairs firm, has been named the “Customers First” winner in the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce’s 2026 Small Business Awards. Announced July 9 at the Chamber’s annual Small Business Awards event, the recognition honors the small business whose commitment to customer service most clearly sets it apart from the competition.

Founded in 2012, the certified women-owned San Diego firm has grown from a boutique agency into one of the region’s leading public relations and government affairs firms. Intesa has doubled its team over the past two years, sustained three consecutive years of double-digit revenue growth and expanded its client portfolio by 26% last year. Intesa provides public relations, strategic communications, and government affairs services for a wide range of organizations, including San Diego State University, SeaWorld San Diego, Expedia Group, H.G. Fenton Company, San Diego Foundation, San Diego Workforce Partnership, and SBCS.

“This award belongs to every member of our team and to the clients who trust us with their most valuable asset: their reputation,” said Margie Newman Tsay, founding partner of Intesa Communications Group. “Our clients stay with us for years because we show up prepared, fully invested and ready for the moments that matter most. Being recognized for putting customers first is the highest compliment our business community can pay us.”

Intesa’s client-first approach has produced measurable results across public relations and government affairs efforts throughout the region. For example, in its first month working with the Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank, the firm helped reimagine the organization’s summer food drive messaging, generating more than 15 million impressions and helping deliver 489,026 pounds of food and $344,505 in donations — the equivalent of more than one million meals and a 175% increase from the previous year. Similarly, Logan Heights Community Development Corporation credits the firm with an 81:1 return on investment after Intesa parachuted in to help the nonprofit promote the California Mortgage Relief Program.

“Small businesses are the heart of our economy: fueling innovation, creating jobs and defining the character of communities across the San Diego region,” said Chris Cate, president and CEO of the Chamber. “We celebrate the resilience, ingenuity and community impact of our small business leaders. They are the very spirit behind our purpose to champion business and empower leaders.”

The Chamber award is as much a reflection of Intesa’s clients as it is the firm itself. The opportunity to partner with organizations doing meaningful work across the region is what makes recognition like this possible. True to form, the Intesa team plans to mark the win by thanking the clients behind the work.

“We call ourselves dot connectors, and this award is what that looks like in practice,” said Maddy Kilkenny, partner at Intesa Communications Group, who leads the firm’s government affairs practice. “Whether our team of 10 people is helping a client navigate a policy decision at City Hall or a story on the front page of the newspaper, we aim to leave them stronger and more confident than before. Hearing our clients say we deliver on that is the best win of all.”

According to the Chamber’s award requirements, businesses with 100 or fewer employees were eligible for nomination. They were voted on by a panel of chamber members, who reviewed the nominations and selected the winners of all four categories.

The recognition adds to more than 60 awards Intesa has earned for excellence in public relations, strategic communications, and public affairs, including honors from PR News, the Public Relations Society of America, PR Daily, the International Association of Business Communicators, the San Diego Business Journal (SDBJ), MARCOM, and the American Marketing Association, among others. It also comes on the heels of two Intesa team members, Emily Alvarenga and Margaret Lutz Chantung, recently receiving SDBJ’s “40 Under 40” and “Indispensable” awards, respectively.

For more information about Intesa Communications Group, visit www.intesacom.com.

About Intesa Communications Group
Intesa Communications Group is a certified women-owned San Diego public relations and government affairs firm that helps leaders communicate and advocate with confidence. Since 2012, Intesa has partnered with the region’s trusted leaders and organizations, providing strategic communications and public affairs counsel on high-stakes issues at the intersection of reputation, policy and public perception. The firm’s work has earned more than 60 industry awards across 53 recognized client campaigns, including the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce “Customers First” 2026 award. Learn more at www.intesacom.com.

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SOURCE Intesa Communications Group

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The Inner Circle acknowledges Shankari Thiagarajan as Pinnacle Professional of The Year

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July 21, 2026

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HOUSTON, July 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Prominently featured in The Inner Circle, Shankari Thiagarajan is acknowledged as a Pinnacle Professional of The Year for her contributions to Information Technology and Agile Delivery.     

Shankari Thiagarajan has established a distinguished career in information technology project and program management, recognized for her expertise in agile delivery, digital transformation, and cross functional leadership across multiple industries. Currently serving as project manager and scrum master at Astellas Pharma Inc., she oversees agile delivery initiatives supporting global life science programs.

With more than 15 years of experience spanning technology and pharmaceutical sectors, Ms. Thiagarajan has developed a reputation for leading complex implementations and driving operational efficiency. Her expertise includes agile methodologies, project and delivery management, product ownership, healthcare IT, telecom and network optimization, financial services modernization, retail technology upgrades, and GIS and digital mapping solutions.

Ms. Thiagarajan earned a Master of Business Administration in Organizational Leadership from Campbellsville University, a Master of Science in Information Systems from Virginia Tech, and a Bachelor of Engineering in Information Technology from Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University College of Engineering Hyderabad.

Throughout her career, she has contributed to major organizations across a wide range of industries. Her accomplishments include leading agile transformations at Cigna, overseeing retail technology upgrades at Walmart, managing large scale telecom transformation initiatives at T Mobile and Verizon, and modernizing financial platforms at Security Finance. She also contributed to the early development of Google Maps during her tenure at Google India, advancing to team lead within a year.

In addition to her corporate achievements, Ms. Thiagarajan is the creator of the YouTube channel My Experiments with Life – #Positivity #Learning, launched in 2023. Through this platform, she shares motivational content and insights focused on personal growth, technology, spirituality, and lifelong learning.

Her professional accomplishments have been recognized through honors including Marquis Who’s Who 2026, a featured podcast interview with Jim Masters on Close Up TV hosted across Apple Radio, Spotify, and iHeart., recognition in The National Law Review & EIN Presswire, and a certificate of appreciation from Virginia Tech for academic excellence and community involvement.

Outside of her professional work, Ms. Thiagarajan enjoys creating motivational YouTube content, exploring technology and spirituality, listening to contemporary music, and pursuing philanthropic and educational interests. She credits her strong work ethic and determination to the example set by her parents.

Looking ahead, she plans to continue advancing her leadership capabilities and pursue executive level opportunities that allow her to make significant contributions within the information technology sector.

Guided by a philosophy rooted in courage, persistence, and continuous learning, Ms. Thiagarajan remains committed to professional growth while inspiring others to pursue excellence and self-improvement.

Contact: Katherine Green, 516-825-5634, editorialteam@continentalwhoswho.com

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SOURCE The Inner Circle

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University of Phoenix Leaders Present at Building Blackboard Together 2026

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July 21, 2026

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Presentations explored learning technology, accessibility and online pedagogy as higher education adapts to an AI-enabled future

PHOENIX, July 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — University of Phoenix leaders shared insights on artificial intelligence, accessibility, online learning and student support at Building Blackboard Together 2026, Blackboard’s flagship user conference, held July 13-15 in Dallas, Texas. The conference brought together educators, institutional leaders and industry experts to explore innovations, technologies and emerging practices shaping the future of teaching and learning.

Representing University of Phoenix were Marc Booker, Ph.D., vice provost of strategy; Kelly Hermann, vice president of Accessibility and Student Affairs; and Erin Amsden, group product manager. Through presentations and panel discussions, the leaders shared perspectives on responsible AI adoption, accessibility leadership, student engagement and the evolving role of learning technologies in supporting institutional goals and student success.

“Building Blackboard Together provides an opportunity to engage with peers across higher education who are navigating many of the same opportunities and challenges around technology, accessibility and learning mobility,” said Dr. Booker. “These conversations help advance practical approaches for supporting learners while thoughtfully integrating innovation into the educational experience.”

During the conference, University of Phoenix was also recognized with the 2026 Blackboard Catalyst Award for Ethical AI Leadership, which honors institutions advancing responsible, transparent and inclusive approaches to artificial intelligence that promote trust and equitable outcomes for learners and educators. The recognition follows the University’s ongoing efforts to support AI literacy, responsible use and AI-enabled learning experiences.

Exploring the Expanding Role of the Learning Management System

As part of the Strategic Leadership Summit, Booker served as a panelist for “The LMS as Mission-Critical: Connecting Learning, Experience & Evidence.” The session examined how learning management systems are evolving beyond course management to support learning, engagement and institutional insight across the student lifecycle.

Panelists discussed how institutions are leveraging learning technologies alongside student information systems to support teaching and learning, advising, co-curricular engagement and data-informed decision-making while addressing increasing expectations surrounding artificial intelligence, student success and accountability.

Sharing Lessons from AI-Powered Student Support

Booker also presented “Scaling AI-Powered Support Across the Student Experience at University of Phoenix,” a session focused on the University’s process for expanding its AI support assistant across the online classroom environment, moving from proof of concept to full-scale deployment over a six-month period.

In addition, Booker participated in “Online Pedagogy to Drive Institutional Growth: Best Practices and Success Stories,” a panel discussion exploring how institutions are designing engaging online learning experiences and leveraging Blackboard technologies to support quality course delivery and student engagement.

Advancing Accessibility Leadership

Hermann joined the session “Communicating Up: Turning Accessibility Work into Leadership-Ready Stories.” The presentation focused on strategies for translating accessibility initiatives into narratives, evidence and visualizations that resonate with institutional leaders.

The discussion explored ways to connect accessibility efforts to broader institutional priorities, demonstrate impact through data and support informed decision-making that advances accessibility and learner success.

Examining Emerging Challenges in Artificial Intelligence

Amsden served as a panelist for “Agentic AI in Pedagogy: Threats and Opportunities.” The session addressed the growing influence of agentic AI and its implications for academic integrity, assessment design and learner engagement.

Panelists explored how technology, pedagogy and security practices can work together to promote authentic student work while helping institutions balance innovation with responsible AI implementation.

Contributing to the Future of Teaching and Learning

Amsden, Booker and Hermann are key members of University of Phoenix’s dynamic leadership team, frequently invited to share their expertise at prestigious national conferences and events. In 2026, University leaders will participate in the ASU + GSV Summit, 1EdTech Learning Impact Conference, SXSW EDU Conference, and PESC Data Summit. These engagements underscore the University’s commitment to innovation and thought leadership in higher education, providing valuable insights and fostering collaborations that drive the future of learning.

About University of Phoenix

University of Phoenix is Built for Real Life. 50 Years Strong. The University innovates to help working adults enhance their careers and develop skills in a rapidly changing world through flexible online learning, relevant courses, academic AI pillars, and skills-mapped curriculum for associate, bachelor’s and master’s degree programs. Active students and alumni have access to Career Services for Life® resources including career guidance and tools. For more information, visit phoenix.edu.

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SOURCE University of Phoenix

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