Phishing As A Service 2.0: The Franchise Model Of Cybercrime
Security Boulevard, Monday, September 1st, 2025
When you think of franchising, you probably picture McDonald's, Starbucks, or Subway - not cybercriminals. But the uncomfortable truth is that modern cybercrime looks a lot less like 'lone hacker in a hoodie' and a lot more like fast food chains. Instead of flipping burgers, they're flipping login pages. Instead of secret sauce, they're selling MFA bypasses.
This is Phishing-as-a-Service (PhaaS) - the business model that's turned digital crime into a franchise system. Buy in, set up shop, and start slinging phishing lures like a dollar menu item.
What is Phishing-as-a-Service, Anyway?
Phishing-as-a-Service is exactly what it sounds like: a subscription platform that provides pre-built phishing kits, hosting infrastructure, and often customer support. In short, it's the SaaS model - but evil.