Picus Report Reveals Critical Gaps in Post-Compromise Attack Prevention — Picus Security Inc.

Event summary

Picus Security's Blue Report 2026 found that only 37% of post-compromise attacker actions are blocked, despite perimeter defenses preventing 69% of attacks.
Analysis based on 338 million attack simulations revealed significant gaps in detecting low-noise activities like discovery and credential collection.
Endpoint security improved with prevention rates reaching 83%, but malware-download prevention fell to 50%.
Sector performance varied widely, with Transportation gaining 29 points while Education lost 30.

The big picture

Picus Security's findings highlight a persistent challenge in cybersecurity: the disparity between stopping attacks at the perimeter and preventing actions once attackers are inside. This underscores the need for continuous validation of security controls across the entire attack chain, particularly as organizations adopt an assume-breach mindset. The report also reveals how sector-specific performance can shift dramatically, indicating that defense strategies must be tailored to industry dynamics.

What we're watching

Defense Effectiveness: How organizations will address the gap between perimeter defenses and post-compromise attack prevention.
Detection Improvements: Whether security teams can enhance detection rules and reduce reliance on static signatures to improve alert generation.
Sector Performance: The pace at which sectors like Transportation maintain gains while others like Education recover from declines in prevention effectiveness.