Why human risk is the next frontier in cybersecurity

The last few years have made one thing clear: humans are the new attack surface.
The biggest breaches weren’t caused by zero-days or advanced exploits. They happened because people made mistakes, got tricked, or simply moved too fast.

Consider the headlines:

• Coinbase: A contractor was bribed, and their credentials were used to exfiltrate sensitive data.
  
• Disney: An employee downloaded a fake AI tool laced with malware—exposing 1.1TB of internal data.
  
• Uber: An employee fell for an MFA fatigue attack, allowing access to internal systems.
  

Each breach followed a similar pattern: attackers didn’t exploit code—they exploited people.

It’s Not Always Malicious

While some incidents involve insiders acting with intent, the vast majority stem from something more mundane: a missed configuration, a shared file, a reused password, or a phishing link clicked in a rush.

Mistakes are human—and they’re everywhere.

Human Risk Is Everywhere in the Modern Workspace

In today’s digital workplace, risk isn’t confined to firewalls or infrastructure—it’s embedded in daily human actions. A single click, share, or access decision can open the door to exposure.

Consider how work gets done:

• Files are sent over email and Slack
  
• Links are dropped into group chats
  
• Permissions are granted in seconds to get a task moving
  
• Contractors are onboarded quickly, often with broad access
  
• Sensitive documents live in shared drives open to “anyone with a link”
  

These aren’t anomalies—they’re the norm, and as organizations scale, collaborate, and move faster, they accumulate invisible risks.

The Awareness Training Myth

Security awareness training is everywhere—but its impact is almost nowhere.

Employees click through generic content once a year, racing to finish as quickly as possible. The modules are broad, outdated, and disconnected from their actual day-to-day work. Most forget what they watched within hours—if they were even paying attention.

And yet, this remains the go-to strategy for reducing human risk.

But awareness isn’t action.
It doesn’t reduce exposure.
It doesn’t catch risky behavior.
It doesn’t shift culture.

Worse, it’s nearly impossible to measure. Security teams are left with completion rates, not confidence.

Why Visibility Matters More Than Ever

The truth is, most organizations don’t know where their human risk is. They lack the context needed to prioritize and act.

When something goes wrong—whether it’s a leaked file, suspicious login, or over-provisioned account—security teams are left scrambling for answers. Who is this person? Should they have had access? Was this intentional or just careless?

These aren’t just technical questions—they’re human ones. And without visibility into the person behind the action, teams are forced to rely on guesswork, assumptions, or inconsistent processes.

To truly reduce human risk, you need more than alerts—you need understanding. You need context. And you need it before a mistake becomes a breach.

That’s Why We Started Cymphony

We built Cymphony to fix this gap.
Our Human Risk Platform connects identity, behavior, access, and context across your entire workforce—employees, contractors, and beyond.

We help teams:

• Measure and reduce their human attack surface
  
• Track and stop risky behaviors before they escalate
  
• Trust their workforce and empower fast, secure collaboration
  

It’s not just another system.
It’s a new approach—built around how people actually work, and where risk truly lives.

Your workforce is your greatest asset—and your greatest risk—Cymphony can help you protect both.