In the first half of 2025, Mexico was the target of 40.6 billion cyberattack attempts, placing it as the second most attacked country in Latin America—only behind Brazil—according to the latest Fortinet Global Threat Report. While this figure is concerning, the level of sophistication employed by cybercriminals is even more alarming: they now invest heavily in reconnaissance and perform up to 36,000 scans per second to detect specific vulnerabilities.
The industries most at risk include manufacturing, telecommunications, healthcare, and financial services, facing attacks designed through extortion strategies that calculate the operational impact of production delays or service interruptions.
Given this threat landscape, cybersecurity must no longer be viewed as a task of detecting and fixing vulnerabilities in the later stages of development—a practice that results in higher costs, longer delivery times, and, in many cases, irreparable damage to reputation. Now more than ever, cybersecurity must be conceived as a transversal pillar across the entire software development lifecycle.
Shift-Left Security: a necessary strategic shift
This is where the Shift-Left Security strategy becomes essential. It consists of applying security practices in the earliest phases of development, integrating controls, validations, and tests from the moment the first line of code is written. This philosophy not only enables the detection of vulnerabilities before they escalate, but also optimizes resources, reduces costs, and increases trust in digital products.
Furthermore, in an environment where organizations are accelerating the creation of digital solutions, application security must not be limited to internal projects. It is also critical to ensure protection in applications developed by third parties, vendors, or software factories. Blind trust in external software can become a critical risk: if the code, processes, and security practices of those building our applications are not reviewed, what is at stake is not the provider’s reputation, but our own brand and organizational integrity. Digital supply chain security must be a core component of any modern secure development strategy.
If cybercriminals are using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to automate phishing campaigns or map attack surfaces, organizations must respond just as forcefully: by incorporating security controls into the software lifecycle, integrating early detection tools powered by AI, and training development teams to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities before they are exploited.
Only by responding decisively to cyberattacks can organizations shift from a reactive posture to one of prevention and resilience—ensuring not only business continuity but also customer trust in an environment where security is no longer optional, but strategic.
Intelligent prevention as a strategic advantage
Moreover, the Shift-Left approach not only strengthens organizations but also accelerates software delivery by embedding security into DevOps workflows. Its impact goes further, helping meet industry regulations and fostering a culture of security awareness among developers, who adopt better coding practices—reducing reliance on dedicated security teams and promoting shared responsibility for cybersecurity.
At Baufest, we have seen firsthand that integrating security at every stage—from design and development to testing and deployment—not only secures applications but builds a reliable digital ecosystem prepared to face the challenges of an increasingly complex and threatening environment.
Today, it is no longer about adding more controls at the end of the process, but about transforming the way we think about security: as a strategic enabler of efficiency, innovation, and trust. Undoubtedly, the future of cybersecurity lies not in reaction, but in intelligent prevention from the very beginning.
For Matías Szmulewiez, Cybersecurity Practice Head of Baufest.
