Few data breaches compare to the massive SolarWinds hacks that left the company — and its roster of high-profile clients — exposed for more than nine months before detection in December 2020. During the unprecedented attacks, foreign hackers infiltrated the Texas-based company’s network, executing malware that gave them access to sensitive information and the ability to spy on tens of thousands of SolarWinds customers. The resulting domino effect represented every security professional’s worst nightmare, raising alarms to the vulnerability of government and corporate cyber systems as more organizations fell victim in its wake.

In this report, we’ll take a closer look at the intensifying scale and impact of data breaches, some of the most common risks and vulnerabilities that lead to them and what CISOs can do to prevent their critical assets — and those of their customers — from walking out the door.