Top Internet Security Risks of 2025: Lessons for Telecom and Tech Leaders

According to the APNIC Blog, internet security risks in 2025 posed significant challenges for enterprises, operators, and governments, highlighting the evolving threats to global digital ecosystems. In their recent post, APNIC showcases three key issues that dominated discussions around internet security last year.

Top Internet Security Risks Highlighted by APNIC

APNIC’s latest analysis reveals the most noteworthy security conversations for 2025, with a keen focus on how operators and technology leaders addressed mounting threats:

• BGP Vulnerabilities: The foundational Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) saw persistent exploitation in 2025, with incorrect routing announcements fueling outages and data interceptions across networks globally.
• Growing Botnet Ecosystems: Botnets became more sophisticated, utilizing advanced communication methods to evade detection. These attacks often targeted enterprises and service providers, creating massive financial and data risks.
• Cybersecurity Gaps Across Sectors: From critical utilities to telecoms, vulnerabilities emerged due to insufficient patching or reliance on legacy systems, leaving networks highly susceptible to exploitation.

The APNIC blog post sheds light on these issues as warnings for telecom operators, hosting providers, and government organizations to rethink cybersecurity priorities.

Why This Matters for the Telecom Industry

Cybersecurity breaches cost businesses billions annually and are especially troubling for the telecom industry, which serves as the backbone of digital communication. In 2025, the telecom sector faced escalating botnet attacks targeting network infrastructures and leveraging IoT devices as additional entry points for exploitation. According to Statista, damages from cybercrime globally are projected to hit $10.5 trillion by 2026, underscoring the urgency of implementing robust security measures.

For telecom operators, BGP routing security is of particular importance. Errant or malicious routing data can disrupt service availability, tarnishing reputations and resulting in steep financial losses. The telecom ecosystem’s dependence on legacy systems exacerbates vulnerabilities, creating avenues for attackers to exploit outdated security protocols.

Emerging competitors such as satellite-based ISPs and 5G-enabled services are doubling down on security as a differentiator. Established carriers must follow suit or risk losing market share in a rapidly evolving landscape.

Future Outlook: What Industry Experts Say

Experts agree that a consolidated push towards advanced AI-driven threat detection, edge security, and regulatory oversight will shape the future of internet security. Industry analyst Jane Miller from SecureNet Insights predicts, “We’re looking at a pivotal moment for telecoms. By 2030, nearly 90% of new cybersecurity solutions will utilize AI-enhanced analytics to preemptively mitigate attacks.”

Organizations like MANRS (Mutually Agreed Norms for Routing Security) are also lobbying for stricter compliance with BGP security frameworks to curb incidents of route hijacking. Countries with stringent cybersecurity regulations, such as Singapore and Germany, are becoming models for how proactive policies can safeguard network infrastructures at scale.

Finally, collaboration across sectors, especially between telecom providers and public institutions, will be crucial in creating unified norms to combat increasingly complex attacks.

Conclusion: Are We Prepared for the Next Wave of Cybersecurity Challenges?

The lessons from 2025 underline the critical need for proactive measures to bolster internet security across industries. For telecom operators, this means prioritizing BGP security, investing in next-gen cybersecurity solutions, and learning from past incidents to anticipate the challenges ahead.

What do you think? Are global telecom players doing enough to safeguard their systems, or is the sector still underprepared for the ongoing evolution of cyber threats? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.