US Cyber Agency: To Foil Hackers, Don't Be Afraid To Use Decoys and Deception
The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has published an advisory urging organizations to use deceptive tactics like cyber decoys to detect and deter hackers. The document outlines methods such as honeytokens and honeypots to distract attackers from sensitive data and signal network compromises. This guidance is specifically tailored for small to medium-sized organizations and critical infrastructure providers to enhance their defensive capabilities.
- ▪CISA has released a 22-page advisory recommending the use of cyber decoys to help defenders detect and foil hackers.
- ▪The techniques include deploying tripwires, breadcrumbs, honeytokens, and honeypots to distract attackers and consume their resources.
- ▪The advisory is designed for small to medium-sized organizations and critical infrastructure sectors that may lack extensive cybersecurity resources.
- ▪Decoys are placed in locations where legitimate users rarely interact, so any access or execution indicates malicious activity.
- ▪The goal is to trick hackers into exfiltrating non-sensitive data while alerting defensive teams to the breach.
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| Canonical URL | https://www.pcmag.com/news/us-cyber-agency-to-foil-hackers-dont-be-afraid-to-use-decoys-and-deception |
| Publication time | Wed, 16 Sep 26 21:41:17 +0000 |
| Retrieval time | 2026-09-16T21:58:41.677Z |
| Last seen | 2026-09-16T21:58:41.677Z |
| Headline source | Publisher (no WeSearch rewrite) |
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| Cluster | vqsyjr24ejNh · 1 stories |
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Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Hackers have long used trickery to bait users into installing malware or giving up their passwords. But in a surprise, a US government cybersecurity agency is urging defenders to fight back with deceptive tactics too. For the first time, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has published an advisory, nudging US businesses and organizations to consider using “cyber decoys” to help them detect and foil hackers that manage to break into their networks. “Cyber decoys are defensive assets that appear to be legitimate systems, accounts, or data,” the agency’s 22-page document says.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at PCMag.
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