Midway through 2025, one thing is clear: the cybersecurity battlefield has permanently shifted—and threat intelligence is now the central command.
From Crisis Mode to a New Normal
The shockwaves of 2024 were just the beginning. Over the past six months, the trends that started last year have not only continued—they’ve escalated.
AI-powered threat campaigns are now routine. Web DDoS volumes remain at record highs, and bot traffic still accounts for more than 70% of all internet activity, with many bots now capable of mimicking legitimate human behavior in real-time. Geopolitical unrest continues to fuel targeted DDoS attacks that spike during regional conflicts—weaponizing traffic at levels some networks simply can’t absorb.
CISOs aren’t just firefighting anymore. They’re recalibrating. The question isn’t if you'll be targeted by an AI-enhanced, multi-vector attack. The question is whether your systems are smart—and connected—enough to stop it.
Why Threat Intelligence Isn’t Optional in Mid-2025
By now, any security leader still treating threat intelligence as a passive feed is already behind. The most resilient organizations have made the shift: from fragmented defenses to integrated, intelligence-driven ecosystems.
Radware experts summed it up best:
“Threat intelligence is crucial in helping organizations gather insights on the threats they face and prioritize resources… particularly important in 2025… to strengthen defenses against hacktivist collectives.”
What we’re seeing across industries is that real-time, contextual intelligence is powering a new generation of defenses:
- Cloud DDoS protection is dynamically updating rulesets based on the latest threat telemetry—able to instantly respond to tactics like the HTTP/2 Rapid Reset floods that surged earlier this year.
- DefensePro appliances are operating as more than intrusion detectors—they're hubs that exchange live indicators with bot managers and app firewalls.
- Rapid virtual patching has become a must-have strategy, neutralizing zero-day vulnerabilities within hours of discovery.
This isn’t security for tomorrow. It’s how leading CISOs are operating right now.
The Silo Problem: Still the #1 Weakness
Despite the clear evolution in threats, too many organizations remain siloed. Their DDoS protection doesn’t talk to their bot defenses. Their WAFs operate independently. Threat intel flows in—but doesn’t inform action.
That’s not just inefficient. In 2025, it’s dangerous.
Radware’s unified threat intelligence model breaks this cycle. By synchronizing detection, mitigation, and analytics across every layer, we turn data into action—automatically. And that’s how you move faster than the attackers.
The Mid-Year CISO Checklist
Six months into the year, here’s what every executive team should be evaluating:
- Are our defenses sharing threat indicators in real-time?
- Do we have visibility into AI-generated attack variants?
- Can we adapt automatically to novel DDoS vectors?
- Are bots bypassing detection by blending into user behavior—and are we catching them?
This isn’t future-proofing. This is present-tense security hygiene.
Final Thought: Threat Intel Is Now the Strategy
The first half of 2025 has made one truth undeniable: you can’t defend against what you can’t see and you can’t respond to what you don’t understand.
Integrated, AI-powered threat intelligence is now the foundation for every serious security posture. It's no longer an advantage. It’s table stakes.
And for those ready to evolve—Radware offers a blueprint:
Unified protection. Real-time intelligence. Automated resilience.
Explore how Radware’s cloud DDoS, Bot Manager, and DefensePro work together to deliver security without blind spots.
Because in the cyber battles of 2025, it’s not just about having defenses. It’s about making them smarter—together.