Navigating a Heightened Cyber Threat Landscape: Military Conflict Increases Attack Risks

The current geopolitical climate demands a proactive, comprehensive approach to cybersecurity. Here’s what you need to know — and how Tenable can help.

The cybersecurity landscape is in constant flux, but rarely do we see such a rapid escalation of threats as we are currently experiencing. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) bulletin, issued on June 22, 2025, serves as a stark reminder of the volatile environment that organizations and their cyber leaders operate in. It specifically highlights the "heightened threat environment" stemming from U.S. involvement in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran, noting the likelihood of cyberattacks from both pro-Iranian hacktivists and state-affiliated actors.

Likewise, U.K. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer remarked at a NATO summit this week that the likes of Iran and Russia were carrying out cyber attacks "on a regular basis" and the U.K. needs to be prepared for them.

And in fact, according to a report by ABC News, hackers backing Tehran have already targeted U.S. banks, defense contractors and oil industry companies since the military bombings, although no widespread disruptions have been caused yet.

According to the article, “Two pro-Palestinian hacking groups claimed they targeted more than a dozen aviation firms, banks and oil companies following the U.S. strikes over the weekend. The hackers detailed their work in a post on the Telegram messaging service and urged other hackers to follow their lead, according to researchers at the SITE Intelligence Group, which tracks the groups' activity.”

This isn't just a geopolitical issue; it's a direct and immediate challenge to every organization, public and private, operating within the U.S. and beyond. As the DHS bulletin explicitly states, these actors "routinely target poorly secured U.S. networks and Internet-connected devices for disruptive cyber attacks." This isn't about if you'll be targeted, but when and, more importantly, how prepared you are to weather the storm.

The new normal: Geopolitical conflict and cyber reckoning

For too long, cybersecurity has often been viewed as a reactive discipline. Exposure Whac-a-Mole®. But in an era where geopolitical tensions translate directly into digital aggression, a reactive stance is a recipe for disaster. We're seeing critical infrastructure, often including operational technology (OT) environments, in the crosshairs. These are the systems that power our cities, deliver our water and fuel our economies. A disruption here can have catastrophic, real-world consequences.

Learn how you can use Tenable products to shore up your defenses. Read the blog Frequently Asked Questions About Iranian Cyber Operations.

Consider the recent history of Iranian-linked cyber activity, which includes breaches of U.S. water infrastructure and attempts to disrupt critical sectors. These aren't abstract threats. They’re documented and impactful. The DHS bulletin, in addition to insights from the Tenable Research Special Operations team, underscores that the risk extends beyond traditional IT networks, emphasizing the need for comprehensive security across all interconnected systems.

Mitigation recommendations

From a practical perspective in this heightened threat environment, we recommend the following immediate steps to strengthen your cyber defenses:

• Use strong passwords and enforce a strong password policy
• Change default passwords, especially on OT hardware
• Scan for and patch vulnerabilities in assets exposed to the internet
• Enable multi-factor authentication (MFA)
• Identify and prioritize your most valuable assets for remediation
• Develop a remediation plan and continue to test and improve it

Securing the foundation: A call to action for OT environments

The specific mention of critical infrastructure in the DHS bulletin is a call to action for every U.S. organization that even touches operational technology (OT) systems. These environments, often characterized by legacy equipment and unique protocols, present distinct cybersecurity challenges. Tenable's expertise in OT security is more vital than ever and gives organizations the immediate ability to:

• Automate asset discovery and mapping: Gain a complete, up-to-date inventory of all your OT assets, from programmable logic controllers (PLCs) and remote terminal units (RTUs) to human-machine interfaces (HMIs), ensuring no critical component is left unmonitored.
• Detect and mitigate OT-specific threats: Leverage advanced detection engines tailored to industrial control systems to identify anomalous network behavior, enforce security policies, and track changes that could signal a breach in progress.
• Contextualize OT vulnerabilities: Understand the specific risks posed by vulnerabilities within your OT environment, taking into account firmware versions, proprietary research and the potential impact on operational continuity.

Embracing exposure management

Beyond practicing strong cyber hygiene across IT and OT infrastructure, what more can organizations do to protect themselves? The answer lies in shifting their mindset from simply managing vulnerabilities to proactively managing exposure. Vulnerability management is crucial, but it's only one piece of the puzzle. Exposure management, however, provides a holistic view of your entire attack surface, allowing you to understand and prioritize risk in a way that traditional approaches simply cannot. This only becomes more important in the age of accelerated, AI-led attacks, which require incredible speed to outmaneuver.

At Tenable, we believe that understanding your exposure is the only way to truly understand and reduce your cyber risk. Our Tenable One Exposure Management Platform empowers organizations to:

• See everything: You can't protect what you can't see. Our exposure management platform provides comprehensive visibility across your entire modern attack surface, scanning everything from IT assets to cloud resources, containers, web applications, identity systems and, critically, your OT environments. This unified view is paramount when adversaries are looking for the weakest link, regardless of whether it resides in your IT or OT infrastructure.
• Anticipate and prioritize: The sheer volume of vulnerabilities can be overwhelming. Tenable's platform goes beyond just identifying vulnerabilities. We leverage advanced analytics, including our industry-leading Vulnerability Priority Rating (VPR), to help you understand the true risk each vulnerability poses to your unique environment. This means you can focus your limited resources on addressing the exposures that matter most, the ones most likely to be exploited by threat actors like those highlighted in the DHS bulletin. This includes pinpointing weaknesses in your OT systems that could be leveraged for disruptive attacks.
• Communicate cyber risk effectively: Security is no longer just an IT concern. It's also a business imperative. The Tenable One platform enables you to translate technical jargon into clear, actionable insights that resonate with leadership. This allows for informed decision-making and ensures that cybersecurity is integrated into the broader business strategy, rather than operating in a silo.

For details about the specific tools, tactics and techniques employed by Iranian nation-state actors and hactivists, and how you can use Tenable products to shore up your defenses, read the blog Frequently Asked Questions About Iranian Cyber Operations.

Conclusion

The current geopolitical climate demands a proactive, comprehensive approach to cybersecurity. It's no longer enough to react to threats, organizations need to anticipate them, understand their exposure and prioritize their defenses where they matter most. The DHS bulletin is a critical warning. Let it be the catalyst for your organization to embrace exposure management and fortify your digital infrastructure, from the data center to the factory floor. The time for action is now.