Security breaches often start from a user clicking on malware embedded in an email, and then that malware is used to, among other things, gain control of other network resources including print devices. Unsecured print devices can then be used to gain social information such as names in an address book or device activity reports, which can be leveraged for additional phishing attacks. In fact, only recently a well-known hacker group made headlines for compromising a wide array of companies and NGOs with attacks that targeted unsecured printers to gain this information.
Furthermore, once a bad actor successfully establishes access via an unsecured printer, it’s rudimentary for them to perform a network scan to identify and attack other insecure devices, climbing higher and higher on the network ladder into more privileged, higher-value access. From there, they can cripple the system with a malware attack, or steal confidential information undetected. Meanwhile, those same devices can be converted into malware bots themselves and used to attack other organizations without your knowledge. If your firewalls and other cybersecurity measures are a fence, then an unsecured printer is an unlocked gate, leaving you totally vulnerable and exposed.