Hoboken – October 19, 2026 -- MiniOrange CEO Anirban Mukherji will tell small and midsize business executives on October 21, 2026, that stolen credentials, not malware, are now the primary entry point for attacks, as eMazzanti Technologies hosts its annual ASPIRE 2026 conference at the Microsoft Conference Center in New York City's Times Square.
Mukherji targets six operational and compliance pain points
His session will cover password fatigue, application sprawl, remote workforce security, regulatory compliance requirements, cyber insurance mandates and third-party access management.
He will present five technologies as ways to reduce risk while simplifying access to business applications: multi-factor authentication (MFA), single sign-on (SSO), adaptive authentication, identity governance and privileged access management.
Attackers shift from firewalls to user identities
According to the organizers, accelerating cloud adoption, remote workforces and a growing number of connected applications are pushing cybercriminals to target user identities, compromised credentials and weak authentication systems rather than breaking through a firewall.
Mukherji will argue that identity has become the new security perimeter. He will address account takeovers, credential theft, phishing campaigns, privilege escalation attacks and unauthorized access attempts.
eMazzanti Technologies CEO Carl Mazzanti said companies have spent years hardening networks, endpoints and infrastructure while attackers turned to an easier target: people. In many recent breaches, the organizers noted, the initial attack vector was a compromised credential or a successful phishing attempt rather than a sophisticated technical exploit.
"Attackers no longer need to break in. Too often, they simply log in," Mazzanti said.
Session promises immediately deployable steps
Mukherji said organizations need to move beyond passwords toward an identity-first security strategy that protects users, applications and data without sacrificing productivity. His presentation will focus on strategies that strengthen security while improving the employee experience.
A single compromised account can expose sensitive data, financial systems, intellectual property and customer information, according to the organizers.
ASPIRE 2026 is free for qualified SMB decision-makers
The in-person conference targets small and midsize business executives, technology leaders and decision-makers, with sessions on artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, operational efficiency and digital transformation. Admission is complimentary for qualified SMB executives and technology leaders. Registration is required and seating is limited.