Pass the Cookie and Pivot to the Clouds

Attackers can steal authentication cookies (small files that prove you're logged in) from a compromised computer to break into web applications and cloud services, even bypassing multi-factor authentication (extra security checks beyond passwords). This works because cookies remain valid long after authentication is complete and are stored where attackers can find them, either on disk or in the computer's active memory. This technique, called "pass the cookie," is a post-exploitation method (a way attackers move through a system after gaining initial access) that also works with similar tokens like JWTs (JSON web tokens, another way to prove identity).