{"id":20992,"date":"2026-08-28T13:35:35","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T13:35:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/?p=20992"},"modified":"2026-08-28T13:35:35","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T13:35:35","slug":"hacked-before-their-first-coffee-why-new-hires-risk-becoming-cybercriminals-favourite-target","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/?p=20992","title":{"rendered":"Hacked before their first coffee: Why new hires risk becoming cybercriminals&#8217; favourite target"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <div style=\"display: grid; grid-template-columns: 300px 160px; gap: 2px; width: 460px; background: #eee; padding: 2px;\">\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u6574\u884c\u5bbd\u5e7f\u544a -->\r\n  <div style=\"grid-column: 1\/-1; width: 460px; height: 250px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876674\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n  <div style=\"grid-column: 1\/-1; width: 460px; height: 90px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876676\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u5de6\u4fa7\u7ad6\u6392 -->\r\n  <div style=\"height: 250px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876672\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n  <div style=\"height: 500px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876680\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u53f3\u4fa7\u6469\u5929\u697c\uff08\u548c\u5de6\u4fa7\u5b8c\u5168\u5bf9\u9f50\uff09 -->\r\n  <div style=\"grid-row: 3\/5; height: 750px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876678\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n  \r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e6\" data-zoneid=\"5876682\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n<\/div><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div style=\"padding-right:0;padding-left:0\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Businesses spend vast sums on cybersecurity. Firewalls, endpoint protection, virtual private networks (VPNs), intrusion detection systems, and artificial intelligence-powered security platforms have become standard defences across corporate networks. Yet despite these investments, one vulnerability continues to undermine even the most sophisticated security architecture: human behaviour.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to Verizon\u2019s <em>2025 Data Breach Investigations Report<\/em>, the human element remains a factor in the majority of successful breaches. While experienced employees can fall victim to cyberattacks, new hires represent a particularly attractive target for cybercriminals. During their first days and weeks in a new role, employees are often overwhelmed with information, eager to make a good impression, and unfamiliar with company processes. This combination creates an ideal opportunity for attackers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Karolis Arbaciauskas, Head of Product at NordPass and Nord Security, argues that employee onboarding has become a critical yet often overlooked cybersecurity battleground.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"h-the-onboarding-vulnerability\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The onboarding vulnerability<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For many organisations, employee onboarding is viewed primarily as a human resources function. New recruits receive employment documents, attend induction meetings, and are introduced to colleagues and systems. However, cybersecurity experts increasingly view the onboarding period as one of the highest-risk phases in an employee\u2019s lifecycle.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">New employees typically lack familiarity with corporate communication patterns and security protocols. They may not recognise phishing attempts disguised as legitimate company emails, nor understand the warning signs associated with fraudulent login pages, fake helpdesk requests, or malicious file attachments. Cybercriminals understand this dynamic well.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Attackers often monitor publicly available information, including LinkedIn announcements and company recruitment activity, to identify potential targets. A newly hired employee can then receive a convincing email appearing to come from the IT department requesting password verification or account activation. Since the individual is still learning how systems operate, they may be more likely to comply. This exploitation of trust is becoming a hallmark of modern cybercrime.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"h-the-danger-of-temporary-passwords\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The danger of \u201ctemporary\u201d passwords<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Perhaps surprisingly, one of the greatest risks can emerge before an employee has even started work. Many organisations continue to distribute login credentials through email, text messages, or instant messaging platforms. While convenient, these methods often leave passwords exposed in plaintext form. Messages may remain stored indefinitely on devices, creating an unnecessary security risk if the account or device is later compromised. An equally problematic practice involves attaching login credentials to company-issued laptops using sticky notes or printed instructions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">More concerning still is the use of predictable temporary passwords. Examples such as \u201cWelcome2026\u201d, \u201cCompanyName123\u201d, or variants based on an employee\u2019s name remain widely used. While intended as short-term credentials, many are never changed. As a result, they become permanent passwords that can often be guessed using relatively simple attack techniques.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to Arbaciauskas, organisations should instead generate unique credentials, deliver them through secure channels such as enterprise password managers, and enforce mandatory password changes during first login. Such measures significantly reduce the risk of credential compromise while simultaneously establishing good security habits from the outset.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"h-beyond-passwords-the-hidden-onboarding-risks\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Beyond passwords: The hidden onboarding risks<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Passwords may attract much of the attention, but they represent only one component of onboarding security. A far broader challenge involves the permissions and access rights granted to new employees. In the rush to ensure productivity, organisations sometimes provide extensive access to systems, applications, and network resources. While convenient, this approach violates the cybersecurity principle known as \u201cleast privilege\u201d, whereby users should only be granted access essential to perform their duties.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Excessive permissions can have serious consequences. For example, if a new employee\u2019s account is compromised, attackers gain access not only to that user\u2019s resources but potentially to wider corporate systems. Another often-overlooked risk concerns abandoned accounts.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Employees occasionally leave organisations shortly after joining, switch departments, or fail probation periods. When access rights are not revoked promptly, dormant accounts remain active and can become attractive entry points for malicious actors. Cybersecurity audits frequently identify stale accounts as a recurring weakness within organisations, particularly where identity management processes lack sufficient oversight.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Many organisations schedule cybersecurity awareness sessions several weeks after an employee\u2019s start date. Unfortunately, this delay creates a dangerous window of vulnerability.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Research consistently shows that phishing remains among the most successful attack methods because it exploits psychology rather than technology. An employee does not need advanced technical knowledge to become a victim; they simply need to trust the wrong email. For new hires, who are often receiving large volumes of communications from colleagues, training providers, managers, and IT departments, distinguishing genuine requests from fraudulent messages can be challenging.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Early cybersecurity education should therefore be considered a fundamental element of onboarding rather than an optional later activity. Even brief introductory sessions covering phishing awareness, password hygiene, multifactor authentication, and incident reporting can substantially reduce organisational risk. Importantly, training should not be viewed as a one-off event. Cyber threats continue to evolve, requiring ongoing education and reinforcement throughout an employee\u2019s tenure.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The expansion of hybrid and remote working models has introduced additional concerns. Many organisations permit employees to access corporate resources using personal laptops, smartphones, and tablets. While this flexibility supports productivity, it can also introduce significant security challenges if devices lack appropriate controls. Unmanaged devices may operate with outdated software, missing security patches, or inadequate endpoint protection. In some cases, malware residing on a personal device can provide a pathway into corporate environments. To mitigate these risks, organisations increasingly deploy mobile device management (MDM) solutions and endpoint security platforms capable of enforcing security policies regardless of device location. As remote working becomes embedded within modern business operations, ensuring that new employees understand device security expectations is becoming equally important as password management.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><!-- \u603b\u5bb9\u5668\uff1a\u6700\u5927\u5bbd908px Grid\u7d27\u51d1\u5e03\u5c40 -->\r\n<div style=\"display: grid; grid-template-columns: 728px 160px; gap:2px; width:908px; background:#eee; padding:2px;\">\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u901a\u680f\u9876\u90e8\uff1a\u6700\u5927\u6a2a\u5e45 908x258 \u8de8\u6574\u884c -->\r\n  <div style=\"grid-column:1\/-1; height:258px; background:#ff6b6b; display:grid; place-items:center;\">\r\n    <!-- JuicyAds v3.0 -->\r\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\" data-cfasync=\"false\" async src=\"https:\/\/poweredby.jads.co\/js\/jads.js\"><\/script>\r\n<ins id=\"1114307\" data-width=\"908\" data-height=\"258\"><\/ins>\r\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\" data-cfasync=\"false\" async>(adsbyjuicy = window.adsbyjuicy || []).push({'adzone':1114307});<\/script>\r\n<!--JuicyAds END-->\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u7b2c\u4e8c\u901a\u680f\uff1a728\u00d790 \u901a\u680f -->\r\n  <div style=\"grid-column:1\/-1; 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display:grid; place-items:center;\">\r\n\t<!-- JuicyAds v3.0 -->\r\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\" data-cfasync=\"false\" async src=\"https:\/\/poweredby.jads.co\/js\/jads.js\"><\/script>\r\n<ins id=\"1114302\" data-width=\"133\" data-height=\"139\"><\/ins>\r\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\" data-cfasync=\"false\" async>(adsbyjuicy = window.adsbyjuicy || []).push({'adzone':1114302});<\/script>\r\n<!--JuicyAds END-->\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n    <div style=\"height:125px; background:#91e7ac; display:grid; place-items:center;\">\r\n\t\r\n<!-- JuicyAds v3.0 -->\r\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\" data-cfasync=\"false\" async src=\"https:\/\/poweredby.jads.co\/js\/jads.js\"><\/script>\r\n<ins id=\"1114303\" data-width=\"125\" data-height=\"125\"><\/ins>\r\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\" data-cfasync=\"false\" async>(adsbyjuicy = window.adsbyjuicy || []).push({'adzone':1114303});<\/script>\r\n<!--JuicyAds END-->\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u53f3\u4fa7\u7ad6\u680f\uff1a160\u00d7600 \u6574\u5217\u9ad8\u5e7f\u544a -->\r\n  <div style=\"grid-row:3\/8; height:600px;  display:grid; place-items:center;\">\r\n    <!-- JuicyAds v3.0 -->\r\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\" data-cfasync=\"false\" async src=\"https:\/\/poweredby.jads.co\/js\/jads.js\"><\/script>\r\n<ins id=\"1114301\" data-width=\"160\" data-height=\"600\"><\/ins>\r\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\" data-cfasync=\"false\" async>(adsbyjuicy = window.adsbyjuicy || []).push({'adzone':1114301});<\/script>\r\n<!--JuicyAds END-->\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n<\/div><br \/>\n<br \/> Hacked before their first coffee: Why new hires risk becoming cybercriminals&#8217; favourite target<br \/>\n<br \/>#Hacked #coffee #hires #risk #cybercriminals #favourite #target<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Businesses spend vast sums on cybersecurity. Firewalls, endpoint protection, virtual private networks (VPNs), intrusion detection&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20993,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[3392,15606,1676,5814,2081,3533,1164],"class_list":["post-20992","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-coffee","tag-cybercriminals","tag-favourite","tag-hacked","tag-hires","tag-risk","tag-target"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/password-e1707602920127.jpg",1213,875,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/password-e1707602920127-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/password-e1707602920127-300x216.jpg",300,216,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/password-e1707602920127-768x554.jpg",640,462,true],"large":["https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/password-e1707602920127-1024x739.jpg",640,462,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/password-e1707602920127.jpg",1213,875,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/password-e1707602920127.jpg",1213,875,false],"covernews-slider-full":["https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/password-e1707602920127-1115x715.jpg",1115,715,true],"covernews-slider-center":["https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/password-e1707602920127-800x500.jpg",800,500,true],"covernews-featured":["https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/password-e1707602920127-1024x739.jpg",1024,739,true],"covernews-medium":["https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/password-e1707602920127-540x340.jpg",540,340,true],"covernews-medium-square":["https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/password-e1707602920127-400x250.jpg",400,250,true]},"author_info":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/?author=1"},"category_info":"<a href=\"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/?cat=7\" rel=\"category\">Stories<\/a>","tag_info":"Stories","comment_count":"0","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20992","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=20992"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20992\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/20993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=20992"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=20992"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=20992"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}