The most dangerous threats to the internet in 2026

On any given day, billions of internet users face countless threats to their online lives and routines. Scores of people are scammed. Many others are hacked with malware or click on a malicious email. Hackers regularly down public services, locking out citizens from their governments. A new product or tool presents a new challenge to privacy rights at every turn. And, there are more data breaches than most can keep up with.

But if we zoom out from the daily baseline of malicious online activity, we will see a vastly different picture of the broader issues that threaten to undermine the very fabric of the internet itself.

As someone who reports on cybersecurity for a living, I am immersed in the constant deluge of news about hacks, breaches, security lapses, and cyberattacks that make up the daily grind. A lot happens, and it's easy to stay hyper-focused on a particular issue or get entirely lost in the headlines altogether. 

That's why every once in a while, I try to look at the entire cybersecurity landscape to try to understand the latest trends and the most pressing threats, how new technologies alter the cybersecurity landscape, and why old security issues often come back to bite. Money, politics, power, and people's attitudes and perceptions all play a part in shaping the direction of the future of the internet, for better or worse. 

It is important to look at the bigger picture for a number of reasons. For me, this exercise helps to ensure that my coverage is reflective of the reality that people experience, rather than the microcosm that we can all sometimes fall into.

I also think it helps for us all to understand our collective threat model at least on an annual basis. The internet is one of the world's best shared resources and it deserves to be protected, as much as our right to access it freely and without interference. It's easier to defend against a threat that you know about. The threats that we don't recognize are the ones that will take us first. 

In this detailed long-read, we'll take a look at some of the most pressing threats that face the internet today, and why they pose a risk. We will look at some of the pressure points that are closing in on the internet. These are things that limit people's online access, threaten to destroy key infrastructure, or are weaponized against the people who use it. 

While in no particular order, let's start with something that is front of mind for many. 

Age verification laws

The internet was designed to be open and decentralized, so much so that it could withstand a nuclear attack. But a wave of governments pushing age verification laws are slowly choking access to the web by walling off large portions to those willing to prove they are old enough to see it. 

These reforms, many passed under the guise of online child safety, now require vast swathes of the adult population to upload a copy of their government-issued documents, such as their driver's license or passport, typically to a third-party company, before they can be granted access to the site or app. All the while, those who upload their information have to hope that their personal data won't be leaked, breached, stolen, otherwise spill onto the web for others to see — and potentially abuse. 

The consequences of age verification laws are widespread and still emerging. 

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