With Artificial Intelligence (AI) becoming popular and being used in the operations of organizations across Asia-Pacific, AI-driven cyber threats will continue to escalate as according to a recent PwC report, more than 40% of leaders say they do not understand the cyber risks posed by emerging technologies like Generative AI.
Palo Alto Networks, a cybersecurity firm, predicts that in 2025, the region will face a perfect storm of AI-driven cyber threats, escalating in scale, sophistication, and impact, and organizations must pivot to unified platforms powered by transparent and trustworthy AI to stay ahead. It is also forecasted that businesses will either innovate or risk being outpaced by adversaries as quantum attacks loom and deepfakes become mainstream tools of deception. There will also be an increased focus on product integrity and supply chain security.
These predictions serve as essential guidelines for organizations to shape their cybersecurity strategies and maximize the potential of AI technologies.
The shift towards a single unified data security platform is predicted to happen in 2025 as organizations are challenged with increased complexity of cybersecurity models. This can be done by reducing the number of cybersecurity tools in use, and switch to a unified platform for enhanced visibility and control. A unified platform can deal with the ongoing cyber skills shortage in the security sector, and will provide end-to-end visibility and context, spanning code repositories, cloud workloads, networks, and SOCs.
Deepfakes will become widespread in the APAC region in 2025, being used to spread political misinformation and targeted corporations for financial gain. Cybercriminals will use ever-improving generative AI technology to launch credible deepfake attacks, as the available technology allows for highly credible voice cloning. Deepfakes are expected to be used alone or as part of a larger attack much more often in 2025.
Another prediction for 2025 is that quantum computing projects will be on the rise in the region resulting to the surge in government as well as corporate investment in quantum technologies.
Quantum computing, however, has the capacity to disrupt cybersecurity. Although quantum attacks on widely used encryption methods are not yet feasible, nation-state-backed threat actors are expected to intensify their “harvest now, decrypt later” tactics, targeting highly classified data with the intent to unlock it when quantum technology advances. This poses a risk to governments and businesses, with the potential to jeopardize civilian and military communications, undermine critical infrastructure, and overcome security protocols for most
internet-based financial transactions. Nation state actors targeting organizations developing quantum computers themselves will be seen in corporate espionage attacks.
To counteract these threats effectively, all organizations will need to act and adopt quantum-resistant defenses, including quantum-resistant tunneling, comprehensive crypto data libraries and other technologies with enhanced crypto-agility.
It is also predicted that transparency is essential for maintaining customer trust in the AI era. APAC regulators focus on ethics, data protection and transparency will remain. However, increased use of AI models will lead to greater emphasis being placed on AI security and the integrity and reliability of the data being used. Transparency and proactive communications about AI model mechanics – specifically regarding data collection, training datasets, and decision-making processes – will be essential for building customer trust.
Organizations are expected to focus more on product integrity and supply chain security in 2025. They will conduct more thorough risk assessments, consider accountability and legal implications of business outages and review insurance arrangements. In cloud environments, where complexity and scale amplify risks, real-time visibility has become a necessity. Comprehensive monitoring involving continuous tracking of both infrastructure and application performance metrics are also expected.
“As cybersecurity takes center stage across public and private sectors, reflected in the Philippines’ rise from 61st to 53rd in the 2024 UN Global Cybersecurity Index, these predictions aim to help organizations navigate 2025. With local insights—such as deepfakes and cyberattacks fueled by rapid digitalization—and trends across Asia-Pacific, prioritizing unified security platforms and AI advancements will be critical to securing the Philippines’ digital future,” shares Oscar Visaya, country manager at Palo Alto Networks.
