Malware and Vulnerability Trends in the First Half of 2026: Abuse of Legitimate Tools and AI-Assisted Attacks Emerge as Defining Features
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Malware and Vulnerability Trends in the First Half of 2026: Abuse of Legitimate Tools and AI-Assisted Attacks Emerge as Defining Features
In the first half of 2026, the threat landscape exhibited a clear trend toward "normalized camouflage." Attackers leveraged legitimate software, remote access tools, cloud services, and supply chain channels for infiltration, theft, and lateral movement. Although AI technology has entered malicious activities, it remains in an assistive stage. The report reveals 215 actively exploited CVEs, as well as the continued evolution of RATs, ransomware, and NFC mobile malware. Enterprises should focus their defense priorities on exposure management, identity governance, behavioral anomaly detection, and third-party risk monitoring.
Recorded Future's Insikt Group released the "H1 2026 Malware and Vulnerability Trends" report, which shows that the number of actively exploited vulnerabilities in the first half of 2026 reached 215, a year-over-year increase of 34%. Attackers are more inclined to abuse legitimate tools and trusted services, while AI mainly plays a supporting role in malicious activities. This article analyzes the impact on enterprise security based on this report.
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