Ransomware in 2025: Blending in is the strategy

**Executive summary:** The report summarizes 2025 ransomware trends, noting that attackers increasingly abuse legitimate access and built-in administrative tools (RDP, PowerShell, PsExec), rely heavily on valid credentials and phishing for initial access, employ double-extortion (encryption plus data leaks), and persistently target sectors like manufacturing and professional services while recommending identity protections, monitoring of administrative tool usage, and regular ransomware readiness testing.