Listen to this Post
A New Security Chapter at Black Hat Europe
For nearly a decade, Cisco has played a quiet but critical role behind the scenes at Black Hat events, protecting thousands of security professionals through DNS-layer defenses. In 2025, that long-standing partnership entered a new phase. At Black Hat Europe in London, Cisco retired its traditional Umbrella-only deployment and introduced Cisco Secure Access, a full Security Service Edge (SSE) platform designed for modern, encrypted, and cloud-first networks.
From Umbrella to Secure Access
Cisco Secure Access represents the evolution of Umbrella from a DNS-focused security service into a broader SSE platform. While it includes secure web gateway, CASB, Zero Trust Network Access, and remote browser isolation, Cisco deliberately narrowed its focus for Black Hat Europe. The priority was clear: maximize DNS-layer security and visibility, the most effective control point for a high-risk, high-traffic conference environment.
Lessons Carried Over From Black Hat USA
Cisco arrived in London armed with operational intelligence from Black Hat USA 2025. Earlier deployments had already validated encrypted DNS blocking at scale and refined detection logic for malicious domain patterns. These learnings allowed Cisco to fine-tune its defenses before the first attendee even connected to the network.
Tracking the ApateWeb Campaign
One threat remained firmly on Cisco’s radar: the ApateWeb campaign. Known for distributing potentially unwanted programs through distinct two- and three-word domain patterns, ApateWeb has historically been a reliable indicator of opportunistic abuse at large conferences. Its persistence made it an ideal test case for Secure Access detection fidelity.
Reduced ApateWeb Activity in Europe
During Black Hat Europe, Cisco confirmed that ApateWeb activity continued, but at substantially lower volumes than seen in U.S. events. Only two associated domains were observed during the conference: gossippass.com and kettledroopingcontinuation.com. This marked a notable decline, suggesting either improved attendee hygiene, reduced attacker interest, or adaptive adversary behavior.
DNS Telemetry at Massive Scale
DNS visibility remains one of the most powerful lenses into network behavior, and Black Hat Europe 2025 generated no shortage of data. Cisco recorded more than 66.1 million DNS queries during the event, offering a detailed snapshot of how modern conference networks behave under real-world pressure.
Fewer Attendees, More Privacy Tools
Interestingly, overall query volume was influenced by changing attendee behavior. More participants chose not to connect to the conference network compared to previous years. At the same time, the continued expansion of Apple Private Relay introduced measurable shifts in DNS traffic patterns, reducing traditional visibility while reinforcing the need for edge-based enforcement.
Forced DNS Redirection Effects
Cisco observed a sharp increase in DNS queries resulting from forced redirection at the network edge. This design ensured that even encrypted or privacy-enhanced traffic still passed through security controls, maintaining policy enforcement without degrading user experience.
DNS Categories Remain Consistent
Despite changes in volume and encryption, the top DNS categories in 2025 closely mirrored those seen in 2024. This consistency reinforces the idea that while transport mechanisms evolve, user behavior and attacker interests remain surprisingly stable year over year.
Application Visibility Expands Rapidly
Beyond DNS, Secure Access tracked unique applications connecting to the network. The growth was striking. In 2021, just over 2,100 applications were observed. By 2025, that number had nearly tripled to more than 6,000 distinct apps.
The Explosion of Generative AI
One category stood out above all others: generative AI. Secure Access recorded a sharp increase in GenAI applications accessing the network, reflecting how deeply these tools have embedded themselves into the workflows of security professionals, researchers, and developers.
Policy Control Over Risky Apps
Importantly, Cisco retained the ability to block or restrict applications that posed a risk to the conference. This capability underscores a key advantage of SSE platforms: visibility alone is not enough without fast, centralized enforcement.
Duo Directory Powers Zero Trust
Identity played a central role in Black Hat Europe’s security architecture. Cisco deployed Duo Directory as the Single Sign-On provider, enabling rapid provisioning, role-based access, and tight integration with zero trust principles.
Streamlined Provisioning at Scale
Duo Directory allowed Cisco to onboard users quickly while maintaining granular access control. This was essential in an environment where thousands of attendees, staff, and partners required different levels of access over a short time window.
Partner Integrations Strengthen the Stack
New integrations with Jamf and Arista further extended the zero trust ecosystem. Device posture, network controls, and identity signals worked together, reducing blind spots and simplifying operations for the security team.
Secure Access as a Conference Blueprint
The Black Hat Europe deployment demonstrated how SSE platforms can be tailored to specific environments. Rather than enabling every feature, Cisco focused Secure Access where it delivered the highest impact, proving flexibility without sacrificing depth.
A Shift in Attacker Economics
The reduced presence of campaigns like ApateWeb may indicate a broader shift. As DNS-layer defenses mature and encrypted traffic becomes the norm, opportunistic attackers may find conference networks less attractive than in previous years.
Visibility Still Wins
Even in an era of encryption and privacy-by-design networking, DNS remains a high-signal control point. Cisco’s deployment reinforced that visibility does not disappear—it simply moves closer to the edge.
Preparing for the Next Region
With Europe complete, Cisco’s attention now turns to Black Hat Asia. Each region presents different user behaviors, threat profiles, and regulatory expectations, making adaptability a core requirement for any security platform.
A Decade of Quiet Defense
Cisco’s long-running role at Black Hat highlights an often-overlooked truth: the most effective security work is invisible. When attendees focus on talks and research, it’s usually because the defenses are doing their job.
Black Hat’s Enduring Importance
Since its founding in 1997, Black Hat has remained one of the most influential cybersecurity event series in the world. Its role as a meeting point for researchers, practitioners, and vendors makes it both a knowledge hub and a high-value target.
Why Real-World Deployments Matter
Unlike lab environments, conferences like Black Hat expose security platforms to unpredictable behavior, experimental tools, and adversarial curiosity. Success here carries more weight than almost any controlled benchmark.
Secure Access as a Signal of Direction
Cisco’s move from Umbrella-only deployments to full SSE reflects a broader industry shift. Point solutions are giving way to platforms that unify identity, network, and application security.
The Balance Between Privacy and Protection
The growing use of privacy tools such as Apple Private Relay highlights an ongoing tension. Security teams must respect user privacy while still enforcing meaningful protections, a balance Secure Access aims to strike.
Operational Confidence Through Data
By the end of Black Hat Europe, Cisco walked away with more than metrics. The deployment delivered confidence that Secure Access can operate at scale, under scrutiny, and in one of the most hostile network environments imaginable.
What Undercode Say:
Secure Access Signals a Maturing SSE Era
Cisco’s Black Hat Europe deployment shows that SSE is no longer a marketing abstraction. Secure Access was used selectively, intentionally, and under real pressure, which matters far more than feature checklists.
DNS Remains the Last Universal Control
Even as encryption spreads and privacy tooling expands, DNS continues to offer unmatched visibility. Cisco’s focus on DNS-layer enforcement was not conservative—it was pragmatic.
Declining Commodity Threats Don’t Mean Safety
The reduced ApateWeb presence should not be misread as declining risk. Instead, it suggests attackers are becoming more selective, favoring environments with weaker baseline defenses.
GenAI Growth Changes Network Risk Models
The surge in generative AI applications introduces new challenges. These tools blur the line between productivity and data leakage, making app-aware controls essential.
Zero Trust Works Best When Invisible
Duo Directory’s success reinforces a core zero trust principle: security that slows users down will be bypassed. Fast provisioning and seamless SSO are security features, not conveniences.
Conferences as Security Stress Tests
Few environments stress security controls like Black Hat. If a platform can perform here, it can perform almost anywhere.
Forced DNS Redirection Is Back in Fashion
Cisco’s use of edge-based DNS redirection reflects a quiet comeback of network-enforced controls, adapted for modern encryption rather than fighting it.
SSE Enables Precision, Not Just Coverage
Secure Access wasn’t deployed everywhere, and that’s the point. Precision beats blanket coverage when defending complex, short-lived environments.
Attackers Notice Hardened Targets
The data suggests adversaries may already be deprioritizing well-defended conferences. This is a success metric that rarely shows up on dashboards.
The Real Win Is Operational Confidence
Beyond detections and blocks, Cisco proved it can deploy, tune, and operate Secure Access rapidly—an ability that matters as much as the technology itself.
Fact Checker Results
Deployment Scope Accuracy ✅
Cisco Secure Access was deployed with a DNS-focused strategy, not full feature saturation, matching the article’s claims.
Threat Activity Claims ✅
Observed ApateWeb domains and reduced activity align with Cisco’s stated monitoring results.
Traffic and App Growth Data ❌
While trends are consistent, exact app counts and DNS figures rely solely on Cisco-reported telemetry.
Prediction
SSE Becomes Default for Large Events 🔮
Future major conferences will increasingly rely on SSE platforms rather than standalone DNS or firewall solutions.
GenAI Policy Controls Will Tighten 🤖
As GenAI usage grows, event networks will begin enforcing stricter controls around data exposure and API access.
DNS Security Will Move Closer to the Edge 🌐
Edge-enforced DNS inspection will become standard practice as privacy technologies continue to reshape traffic visibility.
🕵️📝✔️Let’s dive deep and fact‑check.
References:
Reported By: blogs.cisco.com
Extra Source Hub (Possible Sources for article):
https://www.quora.com
Wikipedia
OpenAi & Undercode AI
Image Source:
Unsplash
Undercode AI DI v2
Bing
🔐JOIN OUR CYBER WORLD [ CVE News • HackMonitor • UndercodeNews ]
📢 Follow UndercodeNews & Stay Tuned:
𝕏 formerly Twitter 🐦 | @ Threads | 🔗 Linkedin | 🦋BlueSky | 🐘Mastodon
