SonicWall Rebuilds Annual Survey Around Protection Outcomes for SMBs — Reveals 'Seven Deadly Sins' in 2026 Cyber Protection Report
SonicWall released its 2026 Cyber Protection Report, identifying that most SMB breaches stem from preventable operational failures called the 'Seven Deadly Sins.' The report marks a shift from reporting threats to focusing on protection outcomes.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 2, 2026 at 02:39
- 🔍 Collected: April 1, 2026 at 18:37
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 21, 2026 at 07:36 (468h 58m after Collected)
MILPITAS, California — March 31, 2026 — SonicWall today announced the 2026 SonicWall Cyber Protection Report. This report marks a significant shift from traditional threat reports to content that emphasizes protection outcomes, a matter of critical importance to business leaders. At the heart of the report are findings that demand serious attention: the reason for most SMB failures is not sophisticated attacks. Instead, failures result from seven predictable and preventable gaps that SonicWall has named the 'Seven Deadly Sins of Cybersecurity.'
The 2026 report continues to leverage data from SonicWall's global network of over 1 million security sensors to reveal an increasingly precise and persistent threat landscape. Key statistics include:
- High and medium-severity attacks increased by 20.8% to 13.15 billion. Attackers are not just increasing frequency but are attacking smarter.
- Today, automated bots generate over 36,000 vulnerability scans per second, accounting for more than half of all internet traffic. Malicious bot traffic alone has surged to 37% of global internet traffic.
- IoT attacks rose by 11% to 609.9 million. Log4j alone generated 824.9 million IPS (Intrusion Prevention System) detections in 2025, four years after its public disclosure.
- Identity, cloud, and credential compromises account for 85% of actionable security alerts. The weapon of choice for attackers is stolen passwords, not zero-days.
- SMBs are inadequately prepared for ransomware. In 2025, 88% of breaches in SMBs were ransomware-related, more than double the probability seen in large enterprises.
Michael Crean, SVP and GM of Managed Security Services at SonicWall, stated: 'SonicWall data reveals that attacks are accelerating and, in some cases, becoming slightly more sophisticated. However, the majority of attacks we witness and investigate are fundamental issues that continue to be overlooked. The danger isn't that AI isn't working; it's that we are using AI as an excuse not to do the things we already know we should be doing.'
For the first time in our history, the 2026 SonicWall Cyber Protection Report focuses on protection outcomes rather than just threat statistics. In this year's study, SonicWall identified seven recurring patterns dubbed the 'Seven Deadly Sins,' defining consistent differences between resilience and exposure across SMB breach investigations, security assessments, and incident reviews.
The Seven Deadly Sins of Cybersecurity:
The 2026 Protection Report identifies seven operational failures that are repeatedly observed and largely preventable, rather than attributing breach risks to exceptional or new attack methods. These sins are...
The 2026 report continues to leverage data from SonicWall's global network of over 1 million security sensors to reveal an increasingly precise and persistent threat landscape. Key statistics include:
- High and medium-severity attacks increased by 20.8% to 13.15 billion. Attackers are not just increasing frequency but are attacking smarter.
- Today, automated bots generate over 36,000 vulnerability scans per second, accounting for more than half of all internet traffic. Malicious bot traffic alone has surged to 37% of global internet traffic.
- IoT attacks rose by 11% to 609.9 million. Log4j alone generated 824.9 million IPS (Intrusion Prevention System) detections in 2025, four years after its public disclosure.
- Identity, cloud, and credential compromises account for 85% of actionable security alerts. The weapon of choice for attackers is stolen passwords, not zero-days.
- SMBs are inadequately prepared for ransomware. In 2025, 88% of breaches in SMBs were ransomware-related, more than double the probability seen in large enterprises.
Michael Crean, SVP and GM of Managed Security Services at SonicWall, stated: 'SonicWall data reveals that attacks are accelerating and, in some cases, becoming slightly more sophisticated. However, the majority of attacks we witness and investigate are fundamental issues that continue to be overlooked. The danger isn't that AI isn't working; it's that we are using AI as an excuse not to do the things we already know we should be doing.'
For the first time in our history, the 2026 SonicWall Cyber Protection Report focuses on protection outcomes rather than just threat statistics. In this year's study, SonicWall identified seven recurring patterns dubbed the 'Seven Deadly Sins,' defining consistent differences between resilience and exposure across SMB breach investigations, security assessments, and incident reviews.
The Seven Deadly Sins of Cybersecurity:
The 2026 Protection Report identifies seven operational failures that are repeatedly observed and largely preventable, rather than attributing breach risks to exceptional or new attack methods. These sins are...