Scattered Spider Isn’t a Glitch, It’s a Warning

Scattered Spider has quickly become one of the internet’s more prolific and dangerous ransomware groups in the past few years. This crew has moved from an obscure corner of cybercrime into the center of the boardroom conversation, and not because they’re the most technically advanced adversaries out there.

It’s because they’re smart enough to exploit the one vulnerability too many companies still ignore: trust.

So, what is Scattered Spider?

Scattered Spider, also known by aliases like UNC3944, Muddled Libra, or Octo Tempest, isn’t your average collection of ransomware threat actors. They are up-and-coming, native English-speaking hackers who are comfortable (maybe too comfortable) in your IT environment. They trade on access more than malware, and what makes them effective is their understanding of social engineering, not just technical engineering.

They use common techniques in unique ways to get in, stay in, and pivot wherever they want within the company. They’ve loudly hit telecoms, casinos, financial firms, and critical infrastructure. Recent pivots into aviation, retailers, and insurance demonstrate increased targeting scope.

And the fallout has been extensive. Their attacks have disrupted customer-facing services, leaked sensitive data, and landed several F500 companies in the headlines.

What makes Scattered Spider different

Most threat groups follow technical patterns that lead to technical detection capability. However, Scattered Spider flips that paradigm, focusing on identity compromises.

• They lead with social engineering, not zero-days.

• Frequent targeting of outsourced help desk/IT services.

• They pivot through identity systems, not backdoors.

• They learn your internal tools and language.

• They weaponize your own processes against you.

Their go-to move is to impersonate employees, abuse trusted IT workflows, and gain administrative access through people. From there, they blend in using PowerShell, RMM tools, and cloud console access.

They have also linked up with ransomware groups like ALPHV and DragonForce, acting as access brokers and operators. But they’re just as likely to go rogue and burn their partners if it suits them. Think of them as a threat group with a start-up mentality and authority issues.

Attacks on identity risk corporate profitability

This is a business problem, not only a security one. When threat actors like Scattered Spider breach a company, the fallout cascades far beyond the SOC. What begins as a technical intrusion rapidly becomes an enterprise-wide disruption with financial, legal, reputational, and operational consequences. Treating it as “just” a security problem understates the true impact.

Let's be clear: this group is not targeting your antivirus. They’re targeting your identity stack, your third-party workflows, and your helpdesk playbook. They exploit gaps between security and operations, and when they succeed, the damage is far bigger than encrypted files.

We’re talking about scenarios where entire cloud environments are hijacked, reputations suffer long after the headlines fade, and exposed data invites serious regulatory scrutiny. Public breaches often lead to sharp declines in stock value, while operational outages can significantly impact profits, making these incidents far more than just technical failures.

Executives are forced into crisis communications. Legal teams scramble to assess disclosure obligations. Regulators come knocking. Customers lose trust. Shareholders react.

Security enables business continuity and underpins corporate resilience. Executive teams and boards should look to treat cyber risk with the same urgency as financial risk ⁠— because when the cloud goes down, so does the business.

If your identity systems are stitched together with duct tape and good intentions, you are already on their list. Scattered Spider is not breaching firewalls. They are walking through unlocked doors.

What your board needs to know to defend against Scattered Spider

Scattered Spider has made one thing abundantly clear: identity is the new perimeter. These attackers aren’t hacking the cloud ⁠— they’re logging in, and by any means necessary. They exploit gaps in authentication, social engineering weaknesses, and inconsistent third-party controls to move laterally and seize entire cloud environments.

To protect your organization, move from asking questions to enforcing outcomes. Below are priority actions executive teams will expect from security leaders and support across the business.

1. Enforce phishing-resistant MFA across the enterprise

Attackers like Scattered Spider are blowing past traditional MFA methods like SMS codes and push notifications by using real-time phishing kits and triggering MFA fatigue. These tactics make it easy to trick users into handing over access.

To stay ahead, require phishing-resistant MFA (like FIDO2 security keys or device-bound passkeys) for everyone: employees, contractors, and especially administrators. Prioritize securing identity providers first. This kind of upgrade makes it dramatically harder for attackers to impersonate users, even if they’ve already stolen credentials.

2. Harden the help desk and identity recovery workflows

Modern attackers love targeting the help desk — one convincing phone call can result in a password reset or MFA being bypassed. It’s a low-effort, high-reward move that still works far too often.

To shut this down, implement strict callback procedures, require multiple forms of identity verification, and use just-in-time access controls. Just as important: train your support teams to spot and escalate anything that feels off. These steps make it much harder for attackers to manipulate their way in, cutting off one of the easiest and most common paths to compromise.

3. Establish continuous access verification for privileged users

Once an attacker gets inside, they often move around quietly, hopping from system to system without raising any alarms. By the time anyone notices, the damage is usually done.

To catch this early, lean on behavioral analytics to flag unusual login patterns, enforce session timeouts, and regularly revalidate access to sensitive systems. These steps help spot compromised accounts or insider threats faster and shrink the window of time attackers have to do harm.

4. Assess and enforce security standards for all third-party IT providers

Third-party vendors can be a major blind spot. If they’re not following your security standards, they can easily become an attacker’s way in.

To close that gap, bake security expectations into contracts, ask for proof of things like MFA and logging, and regularly audit who has access to what. It’s a simple way to extend your security perimeter and cut down the chances of getting burned by someone outside your org chart.

5. Simulate modern threat actor tactics with purple teaming

Too often, defenders are preparing for yesterday’s threats while attackers like Scattered Spider keep evolving. That mismatch gives adversaries the upper hand.

To stay sharp, run purple team exercises that mimic the exact tactics these groups use, like social engineering, SIM swapping, identity abuse, and cloud takeovers. Get everyone involved: security, IT, HR, and support. This kind of hands-on practice builds real muscle memory and helps confirm your team can detect and respond when it counts.

What to expect next?

Scattered Spider is not a one-off campaign. It is a blueprint for a new generation of attackers who understand that access is easier bought or faked than breached.

As this group of threat actors continues to make waves, expect more of the same, only faster. Scattered Spider will continue to strike both industry giants and smaller vendors, growing more sophisticated with each attack.

As organizational defenses strengthen, this group becomes increasingly creative. Future campaigns will likely coincide with major events and holiday periods when attention is fragmented and response times lag. We can also expect heightened targeting of managed service providers and third-party support staff, as these remain common points of entry.

Perhaps most concerning, they are increasingly turning to pressure campaigns aimed directly at executives, using data leaks and public shaming to accelerate their demands and amplify disruption. So, if your defenses are built for malware and not impersonation, your next breach may already be underway .