Receivership is a formal insolvency process in which a court-appointed receiver, or similar administrator, takes control of a company’s assets or operations to protect creditors and manage the business through financial distress. It is not a cyber-security term by itself, but it changes the environment in which security teams operate because ownership, decision-making, and access to systems can shift quickly.
In cyber incidents, receivership matters because it can slow incident response, complicate evidence preservation, and disrupt normal communications with staff, vendors, and customers. Security controls may be maintained by a smaller team, outsourced to administrators, or adjusted to meet legal and financial priorities. Attackers can also exploit the confusion around restructuring, using phishing, extortion, or impersonation while business processes are under strain. For defenders, the key is to secure identities, preserve logs, map critical services, and coordinate closely with legal and insolvency professionals.