Cyber Trends 2025: The Impact of a Shrinking ‘Time to Ransom’

TL;DR:

Ransomware gangs can now encrypt data within six hours of breaching a network, far faster than the current 7-10 day average detection window. Security teams must accelerate detection, tighten access, and harden response plans to keep pace. An independent technology advisor can help. 

The Countdown Has Begun 

Like the sands through an hourglass, so are ransomware breaches. 

The image of sand running through an hourglass perfectly illustrates the countdown companies face during a cyberattack. Each grain of sand represents the dwindling time organizations have to detect, respond, and defend before damage is done.  

From Dwell Time to Time-to-Ransom: A Shrinking Window  

Five years ago, Mandiant’s M-Trends report highlighted a median dwell time of 24 days. Dwell time is the number of days a threat actor could lurk inside an organization’s IT environment before being detected. Other studies suggested dwell times as high as 230 days—that’s over seven months of undetected access. 

Advances in cybersecurity tooling, like Extended Detection and Response (EDR), and AI-driven security operations have shortened dwell time significantly. Today, average dwell times hover in the 7–10 day range. A clear improvement. 

But here’s the problem: when defenders raise the wall, attackers just build a taller ladder. According to recent Department of Homeland Security briefings, the most active ransomware groups now have a Time to Ransom (TTR) of just 6 hours. For the broader landscape of threat actors, the average TTR is 17 hours—still less than a single day. 

That means within half a workday of compromising a system, attackers can encrypt files and deliver ransom demands. So, while organizations may detect breaches faster, attackers are acting even faster.  

Defending Against a Shorter TTR 

All is not lost. The cybersecurity community is nothing if not adaptive. Defenders must continuously improve their security posture across every layer of their program. Think in terms of completeness and continuous improvement, using elements of the NIST Cybersecurity Framework 2.0 as a guide: 

•  Identification 
• Protection 
• Detection 
• Response 
• Recovery 
• Education 
• Governance 

13 High-Impact Actions to Cut Ransomware Threats 

Here are some high-impact actions every organization should take: 

1. Implement XDR or EDR on every endpoint possible. 
2. Aggregate security logs into a SIEM for analysis. 
3. Conduct proactive threat hunting. 
4. Control and monitor access and privilege tightly. 
5. Use MFA everywhere conceivable. 
6. Segment your networks. 
7. Leverage threat intelligence. 
8. Perform frequent vulnerability scanning and patch quickly. 
9. Develop and test incident response plans. 
10. Perfect detection and response—or leverage Managed Detection and Response (MDR) services. 
11. Adopt automation but always validate results. 
12. Run employee security awareness training and measure effectiveness. 
13. Consult and align with leading security frameworks.

This list could go on, but frameworks exist for a reason: they capture the collective expertise of the security community. They’re not just compliance checkboxes; they’re battle-tested roadmaps for resilience. 

Navigate the Complexity with an Independent Technology Advisor

The cybersecurity marketplace is crowded and fast-moving, making it difficult to select and implement the right tools in the right order. Bluewave’s independent technology advisory helps organizations identify gaps, shrink unknowns, and accelerate time to protection and value.

Contact us!