Businesses today use an average of 106 SaaS apps. As reliance on these tools grows, the frequency and severity of threats targeting them are rising rapidly. According to the Cost of a Data Breach Report 2025, the average cost of a data breach is $4.4 million. But this figure doesn’t show the full extent of the damage a breach causes. The real costs of SaaS breaches extend far beyond immediate financial losses.
Knowing the hidden costs of cybersecurity incidents is critical for MSPs to better protect their clients’ SaaS environments, ensure business continuity and position themselves as trusted advisors.
In this article, we dive into the true cost of SaaS breaches and discuss how MSPs can strengthen client security, reduce exposure and build resilience through proactive, layered defense strategies.
The expanding threat landscape
Although cloud-based SaaS tools, such as Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, have become indispensable for modern organizations, they also expand the attack surface. Every new SaaS app, integration with other apps or addition of a user account creates more entry points for cybercriminals to exploit. In 2024, a staggering eight out of ten companies experienced a cloud security incident.
Apart from known threats, SaaS platforms also carry hidden risks, such as risky user behavior, orphaned links or disabled or inactive MFA. End users may engage in unsafe file sharing or guest accounts may remain active long after they’re needed, both of which can inadvertently expose sensitive information.
Additionally, cybercriminals are becoming more dangerous and increasingly sophisticated. They use highly advanced AI-powered phishing campaigns to target unsuspecting users. Token theft is another popular tactic, which allows them to bypass passwords altogether. MSPs must also keep a close eye on OAuth abuse, which allows attackers to gain persistent access to SaaS applications.
Adopting proactive security measures is no longer optional for MSPs looking to strengthen SaaS security. To ensure comprehensive protection of their clients’ SaaS environments, MSPs must not only monitor for known threats but also examine hidden risks.
Breaking down the real costs of a SaaS breach
When a SaaS breach occurs, an organization’s first focus is on financial losses. However, the true costs extend far beyond immediate monetary losses. Here’s a breakdown:
Direct financial costs
Depending on the scale and intensity, a SaaS breach can cost an organization hundreds or millions of dollars. These expenses include ransom payments to recover data, legal fees for counsel and potential litigation, specialized forensics to investigate the breach and regulatory fines.
Operational disruption
Breaches not only expose data, but also bring critical business operations to a grinding halt. This results in lost productivity, and can last for hours or even days.
Reputational damage
SaaS breaches can erode customer trust, and once that trust is broken, it’s very hard to restore. Your customers and partners may question your MSP’s reliability and even turn to competitors instead.
Hidden long-tail effects
Containing a breach is only one part of the story. As a result of diminished credibility, businesses may face higher cyber insurance premiums, increased customer acquisition costs and even a reduced market valuation. In some cases, a breach can weaken your competitive edge by giving rivals access to stolen data or trade secrets.
Real-world cyber incidents: Lessons learned
Cyberattacks can be costly and damaging, but they also leave lessons to be learned. By analyzing and understanding real-world cyber incidents, businesses and MSPs can gain insights into what went wrong, how cybercriminals operated and what they can do to strengthen cybersecurity. Let’s take a look at some of the notable breaches in recent years.
The Google Salesforce breach
In August 2025, Google reported a breach of one of its Salesforce databases by the hacker group ShinyHunters (aka UNC6040). While the attackers accessed customer contact details and notes of SMB customers, no passwords, financial data or highly sensitive information were compromised. The attackers used voice phishing to target their victims, pretending to be Salesforce support.
The incident highlights the growing sophistication of SaaS threats, and the need for continuous monitoring and training to tackle threats like phishing, vishing and credential theft.
The Internet Archive data breach
In October 2024, the Internet Archive disclosed a major security breach alongside disruptive DDoS attacks. The incident exposed data from about 31 million user accounts, including email addresses, usernames, bcrypt-hashed passwords and some internal records. According to reports, attackers exploited unrotated API tokens in a Zendesk support system. The incident showed critical gaps in token management and security monitoring. MSPs and their clients must ensure the security of tokens by encrypting them, storing them securely and rotating them periodically to minimize risks.
Building true SaaS resilience through layered defense with Kaseya 365 User
SaaS threats are evolving rapidly and becoming more dangerous than ever before. A SaaS breach can inflict irreparable damage, causing not just financial losses but also hurting reputation, eroding customer trust and weakening competitiveness.
The good news is that adopting a proactive, layered security posture can prevent or significantly reduce many of the worst consequences of a SaaS breach.
That’s where Kaseya 365 User comes in.
Kaseya 365 User is an innovative subscription-based service designed to help MSPs like you maximize SaaS security while minimizing cyber-risks and costs. A single Kaseya 365 User subscription includes all the essential components needed to protect and preserve the critical data and identity of SaaS users in their Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace environments.
Each component in Kaseya 365 User works together to prevent, respond to and recover from emerging SaaS threats. Together, they offer a layered defense, empowering you to protect your clients from emerging SaaS threats, detect and remediate threats automatically and ensure quick recovery and business continuity when the inevitable happens.
Ready to protect your clients from the next breach? Learn how Kaseya 365 User helps you deliver comprehensive protection.
