Last updated at Fri, 06 Jun 2025 20:16:37 GMT

As India's economy rapidly digitizes, cybersecurity challenges are becoming increasingly complex. This May, Rapid7 launched our inaugural Global Security Day series across India, bringing together top security leaders in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru to address the most pressing cyber threats facing organizations in 2025.

Key insights that emerged

Across all three cities, several critical themes emerged that are shaping India's cybersecurity landscape:

AI is No Longer Optional: Organizations recognize that AI has become essential for threat detection, exposure management, and SOC operations. The question is no longer whether to adopt AI, but how to implement it effectively.

Attack Surface Explosion: Cloud misconfigurations, insecure APIs, and identity misuse are driving today's biggest risks. Organizations are struggling to maintain visibility and control across increasingly complex environments.

SOC Modernization is Urgent: Traditional Security Operations Centers need fundamental transformation, with automation and AI at their core to handle the volume of modern threats.

Talent Gap Challenges: Upskilling and reskilling initiatives are critical to closing the cybersecurity talent gap that's affecting organizations globally, but particularly acutely in India's booming tech sector.

Regulatory Evolution: India's evolving cybersecurity regulatory landscape is shaping how organizations approach their security investments and strategy development.

A journey across India's cyber capital cities

Our three-city roadshow, organized in collaboration with Information Security Media Group (ISMG), focused on the theme "2025 Cyber Threat Predictions: AI-Driven Attacks, Ransomware Evolution, and Expanding Attack Surface." The response from India's cybersecurity community was overwhelming, with 138 security leaders and delegates participating across all three cities.

Launching with impact in Mumbai (May 8)

Our Mumbai kickoff set the tone for the entire series, drawing 43 security leaders eager to dive into critical cybersecurity challenges. Rob Dooley, General Manager APJ, welcomed attendees before Regional CTO Robin Long delivered comprehensive insights on:

The highlight was our fireside chat featuring Starlin Ponpandy, CISO of Orion Systems and Rapid7 customer, discussing ‘Building a New-Age SOC: Practical Applications of AI’. The conversation explored choosing the right SOC model, building effective teams, and navigating the complexities of AI trust and explainability.

The main focus of the Q&A was the evolving cyber threat landscape and how organizations can prepare for 2025's AI-driven, increasingly complex attack environment.

The conversation was dominated by leaders sharing insights on the rise of AI-powered threats, the shift in ransomware tactics to double and hybrid extortion and the urgent need for proactive threat exposure management. Rapid7's emphasis on real-time, AI-enabled defenses and automated risk management strategies sparked strong engagement.

Strategic dialogue in Delhi (May 13)

Our Delhi event brought together 43 delegates for candid, strategic discussions about 2025's top cyber threats. Security leaders engaged in deep conversations about AI-powered detection and defense, proactive exposure management, and building resilient SOCs with automation.

The panel discussion on ‘Building a New-Age SOC’ addressed critical challenges including the cybersecurity talent gap and integrating security into DevOps workflows, a thought-provoking conversation examining identity-centric security models and the shift from traditional SOCs to Managed Detection and Response solutions.

Attendees posed incisive questions about upskilling teams in an AI-driven environment, managing tool sprawl, and operationalizing security by design - highlighting the sophisticated thinking of India's cybersecurity leadership.

Tactical discussions in India’s Silicon Valley - Bengaluru (May 15)

Our Bengaluru finale drew the largest crowd with 52 delegates, including CISOs and cybersecurity executives from across South India. The discussions were highly tactical, focusing on:

  • Modernizing SOCs through AI-led threat detection
  • Countering double and triple extortion ransomware
  • Risk automation and secure cloud transformation

Veteran industry speaker Satish Kumar Dwibhashi joined Robin Long for discussions that reinforced a clear theme: security strategy must evolve in lockstep with attacker innovation.

Building for the future

The success of our India Security Days reflects not just the hunger for cybersecurity knowledge in the region, but also Rapid7's commitment to supporting India's digital transformation journey. We're excited to announce that we're expanding our presence with a Global Capability Center (GCC) in Pune, which will serve as a hub for innovation and home to teams across engineering, business support, and our Security Operations Center (SOC).

This initiative represents more than just business expansion - it's about building cybersecurity capability and expertise right here in India, that will shape a secure digital future for organizations around the world.

The road ahead

The conversations, connections, and insights from our India Security Days have reinforced our belief that India's cybersecurity community is among the most forward-thinking globally. The challenges are significant - from AI-powered attacks to evolving ransomware tactics - but so is the talent, innovation, and determination to address them.

As we look toward 2025 and beyond, events like these remind us that cybersecurity is ultimately about people: the security leaders making tough decisions, the practitioners implementing defenses, and the communities sharing knowledge and supporting each other.

Thank you to all the security leaders who joined us in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru. Your engagement, questions, and insights made these events truly impactful. We look forward to continuing these conversations and supporting India's cybersecurity community as we navigate the challenges and opportunities ahead.

Interested in joining our growing team in India? Learn more about career opportunities at our new GCC in Pune.