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Key Trends in Sophos 2022 Threat Report
Sophos, a global leader in next-generation cybersecurity, on Wednesday published the Sophos 2022 Threat Report, which shows how the gravitational force of ransomware’s black hole is pulling in other cyberthreats to form one massive, interconnected ransomware delivery system – with significant implications for IT security.
The report, written by SophosLabs security researchers, Sophos Managed Threat Response threat hunters and rapid responders, and the Sophos AI team, provides a unique multi-dimensional perspective on security threats and trends facing organizations in 2022.
The Sophos 2022 Threat Report analyzes the following key trends:
1. Over the coming year, the ransomware landscape will become both more modular and more uniform, with attack “specialists” offering different elements of an attack “as-a-service” and providing playbooks with tools and techniques that enable different adversary groups to implement very similar attacks.
According to Sophos researchers, attacks by single ransomware groups gave way to more ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) offerings during 2021, with specialist ransomware developers focused on hiring out malicious code and infrastructure to third-party affiliates.
Some of the most high profile ransomware attacks of the year involved RaaS, including an attack against Colonial Pipeline in the U.S. by a DarkSide affiliate.
An affiliate of Conti ransomware leaked the implementation guide provided by the operators, revealing the step-by-step tools and techniques that attackers could use to deploy the ransomware.
Once they have the malware they need, RaaS affiliates and other ransomware operators can turn to Initial Access Brokers and malware delivery platforms to find and target potential victims. This is fueling the second big trend anticipated by Sophos.
2. Established cyberthreats will continue to adapt to distribute and deliver ransomware. These include loaders, droppers and other commodity malware; increasingly advanced, human-operated Initial Access Brokers; spam; and adware. In 2021, Sophos reported on Gootloader operating novel hybrid attacks that combined mass campaigns with careful filtering to pinpoint targets for specific malware bundles.
3. The use of multiple forms of extortion by ransomware attackers to pressure victims into paying the ransom is expected to continue and increase in range and intensity. In 2021, Sophos incident responders catalogued 10 different types of pressure tactics, from data theft and exposure, to threatening phone calls, distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, and more.
4. Cryptocurrency will continue to fuel cybercrimes such as ransomware and malicious cryptomining, and Sophos expects the trend will continue until global cryptocurrencies are better regulated. During 2021, Sophos researchers uncovered cryptominers such as Lemon Duck and the less common, MrbMiner, taking advantage of the access provided by newly reported vulnerabilities and targets already breached by ransomware operators to install cryptominers on computers and servers.
“Ransomware thrives because of its ability to adapt and innovate,” said Chester Wisniewski, principal research scientist at Sophos. “For instance, while RaaS offerings are not new, in previous years their main contribution was to bring ransomware within the reach of lower-skilled or less well-funded attackers.
This has changed and, in 2021, RaaS developers are investing their time and energy in creating sophisticated code and determining how best to extract the largest payments from victims, insurance companies, and negotiators. They’re now offloading to others the tasks of finding victims, installing and executing the malware, and laundering the pilfered cryptocurrencies.
This is distorting the cyberthreat landscape, and common threats, such as loaders, droppers, and Initial Access Brokers that were around and causing disruption well before the ascendancy of ransomware, are being sucked into the seemingly all-consuming ‘black hole’ that is ransomware.
“It is no longer enough for organizations to assume they’re safe by simply monitoring security tools and ensuring they are detecting malicious code. Certain combinations of detections or even warnings are the modern equivalent of a burglar breaking a flower vase while climbing in through the back window.
“Defenders must investigate alerts, even ones which in the past may have been insignificant, as these common intrusions have blossomed into the foothold necessary to take control of entire networks.”
Additional trends Sophos analyzed include:
· After the ProxyLogon and ProxyShell vulnerabilities were discovered (and patched) in 2021, the speed at which they were seized upon by attackers was such that Sophos expects to see continued attempts to mass-abuse IT administration tools and exploitable internet facing services by both sophisticated attackers and run-of-the-mill cybercriminals
· Sophos also expects cybercriminals to increase their abuse of adversary simulation tools, such as Cobalt Strike Beacons, mimikatz and PowerSploit. Defenders should check every alert relating to abused legitimate tools or combination of tools, just as they would check a malicious detection, as it could indicate the presence of an intruder in the network
· In 2021, Sophos researchers detailed a number of new threats targeting Linux systems and expect to see a growing interest in Linux-based systems during 2022, both in the cloud and on web and virtual servers
· Mobile threats and social engineering scams, including Flubot and Joker, are expected to continue and diversify to target both individuals and organizations
· The application of artificial intelligence to cybersecurity will continue and accelerate, as powerful machine learning models prove their worth in threat detection and alert prioritization. At the same time, however, adversaries are expected to make increasing use of AI, progressing over the next few years from AI-enabled disinformation campaigns and spoof social media profiles to watering-hole attack web content, phishing emails and more as advanced deepfake video and voice synthesis technologies become available
To learn more about the threat landscape in 2021 and what this means for IT security in 2022, read the full Sophos 2022 Threat Report.
Additional content for the Sophos 2022 Threat Report:
· Video of the headline findings, presented by Chester Wisniewski, principal research scientist, Sophos
· An article on SophosLabs Uncut recapping the report sections
· A Sophos News opinion piece by Wisniewski on the ransomware turf wars
· A Naked Security article introducing the report
Irvine Partners, the woman-led, African-born creative communications agency operating across Nigeria, has cemented its position as a disruptive force on the global stage following a landmark week of international industry recognition for its CEO and founder, Rachel Irvine.
Rachel-Irvine-CEO-Irvine-Partners
Irvine has been named to Campaign UK’s prestigious 40 over 40 list for 2026, while simultaneously earning a place on PRovoke Media’s Innovator 25 EMEA index – two of the communications industry’s most closely watched honours, secured in the same week. The achievement places her among the most influential and progressive communications leaders across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
For Nigeria – Africa’s largest economy and one of its most competitive and complex communications environments – the recognition speaks directly to something the local industry has long understood: that the strategic thinking, cultural intelligence and executional precision forged in African markets is not a regional advantage. It is a global one.
Irvine Partners brings this philosophy to some of the world’s most prominent digital and consumer brands in the Nigerian market, including TikTok, Spotify, Uber and Google – organisations that demand communications work of the highest international calibre, delivered with genuine local understanding.
An African agency rewriting the global narrative
Campaign UK’s 40 over 40 celebrates individual excellence, leadership and lasting impact within the British media and marketing landscape. PRovoke Media’s Innovator 25 spotlights those who are dismantling traditional PR structures, advancing data-led practice, and reshaping how the industry operates. To earn both in a single week is rare by any measure.
What underpins both honours is a story that begins not in London but in Africa – in the dynamic, high-stakes communications environments of markets like Nigeria, where agencies must be sharper, faster and more culturally precise than anywhere else in the world.
“These accolades are less about my own journey and far more about where Irvine Partners is going as a collective,” says Rachel Irvine. “For a long time, the global communications industry treated African agencies as local executors of global strategies. What we’ve proven over the past few years is that the technical craft, cultural capital, and data frameworks built within our agency are not just scalable for the continent; they are world-class.”
Built on the same ethos that works in Lagos
The recognition follows the agency’s strong performance at the IN2 SABRE Awards EMEA, where Irvine Partners took major wins for Unicorn School – its proprietary internal talent development programme – and for its advanced data analytics capability, alongside notable shortlists for global clients including Spotify and Uber.
Nigeria’s communications market is one of the most demanding in the world. Consumer audiences are sophisticated and discerning. The media environment is layered, fast-moving and deeply attuned to authenticity. Brands that succeed here do not do so through generic messaging – they do so through precision, cultural credibility and strategic consistency. These are precisely the competencies that Irvine Partners has built its international reputation on.
“The PR landscape has fundamentally shifted,” Irvine adds. “Clients no longer want siloed regional strategies; they want intelligent, culturally intuitive storytelling backed by bulletproof analytics that move the business needle. We built our foundations on that exact ethos in highly dynamic markets, and bringing that specific DNA to the UK and EMEA regions is why we are winning.”
The agency’s agile, borderless model – deliberately structured to move at the speed of modern brands rather than the pace of legacy networks- is one that Nigerian communications professionals will recognise as a natural evolution of how the best African agencies have always operated: lean, sharp and built for impact.
Underlying both honours is Irvine’s sustained commitment to talent development and cultural diversity across all of the agency’s wholly owned offices – a principle as central to its Lagos work as to any other market in its growing global footprint.
Mark Zuckerberg, Meta Chief Executive Officer, has announced a major leadership change at WhatsApp, confirming that Will Cathcart will step down as head of the messaging service after seven years in office.
Zuckerberg made the announcement in a post shared on Facebook on Monday, June 22, 2026, praising Cathcart’s contributions to the growth of the platform.
According to him, Cathcart played a key role in expanding WhatsApp’s global user base to over three billion people while promoting privacy-focused communication across its services.
“Will’s been one of Meta’s most important and effective leaders, helping to bring WhatsApp to over 3 billion people and championing privacy for our community,” Zuckerberg stated.
The Meta CEO also announced that Kunal Shal will take over leadership of WhatsApp.
He described Shal as a “builder” with strong international experience, adding that his leadership style aligns with Meta’s long-term vision for the messaging platform.
Meta said the transition is aimed at strengthening WhatsApp’s role in both personal and business communication globally, as the platform continues to expand its services across markets.
Industry observers say the leadership change marks a significant transition for WhatsApp, which has grown rapidly under Cathcart’s stewardship, particularly in areas of privacy, encryption, and enterprise messaging solutions.
However, Meta has not disclosed the exact timeline for the leadership handover or further structural changes within the messaging division.
The company reaffirmed its commitment to maintaining WhatsApp’s security standards and continued innovation under the new leadership.
MTN Nigeria has raised the bar for corporate disclosure in Africa after publishing its 2025 sustainability report in full compliance with International Financial Reporting Standards S1 and S2.
Dr. Karl Toriola, CEO of MTN Nigeria,
The report, independently assured by Ernst & Young, marks the telecom operator’s seventh consecutive annual sustainability publication and third year as an early adopter of the global framework ahead of its mandatory implementation.
Dr. Karl Toriola, CEO of MTN Nigeria, said, “strong governance and ethical conduct are foundational to our sustainability strategy. We reinforced compliance through our Conduct Passport Framework and robust internal controls.”
He added that “in May 2025, we became the first telecommunications company in Nigeria to publicly present a sustainability report on the Nigerian Exchange Group platform, an important milestone in our commitment to IFRS S1 and S2- aligned disclosure and accountability.”
The company also secured Carbon Disclosure Project ratings of ‘B-’ for climate change and ‘C’ for water security.
Under the IFRS S2 framework, the telecoms operator disclosed climate-related risks linked to flooding, heat stress, regulatory changes and possible future taxes or charges on carbon emissions, following a climate scenario analysis completed in 2024.
The report also showed that MTN Nigeria now uses a digital reporting format – XBRL. This makes its sustainability and governance data easier for investors and ESG rating agencies to access and analyse through automated systems.
The Company also carried out assessments to understand how sustainability issues affect both its business operations and society at large, while measuring its overall economic, environmental and social impact from 2021 to 2024.
In addition, over one-third of MTN Nigeria’s biggest suppliers (based on spending) have committed to supporting the company’s net-zero emissions goals, although these commitments have not yet gone through an independent audit or verification process.
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