More than 32 million high-confidence phishing emails were detected by Darktrace in 2025, showcasing a substantial escalation in identity-driven cyber threats. The data was collected by Darktrace from incidents across its global customer base and points to a year defined by automation, convergence and accelerating attacker speed. Over 8.2 million phishing emails targeted VIPs, accounting for more than 25% of all observed phishing attempts. Meanwhile, 1.6 million phishing emails originated from newly created domains and 1.2 million incorporated malicious QR codes. Notably, 70% of phishing emails successfully passed DMARC authentication, 41% were classified as spear-phishing and 38% contained novel social engineering techniques. One-third exceeded 1000 characters. Identity Compromise…