304 in FY 2024. This trajectory follows sharp contraction in 2022 and 2023, and while still below the 2021 peak of $20.6 billion, “this level of capital places 2025 nearly on par with 2022 for investment in the cybersecurity industry and firmly establishes it as the strongest funding year of the postcorrection cycle, reflecting renewed confidence in the industry,” said the Pinpoint report. Likewise, Forrester analysts expect demand for cybersecurity products and services to remain “a tech-spending bright spot, projected to grow faster than overall global commercial software.” Forrester predicted that 2025 will show a rise of 13.1 percent in cybersecurity spending year over year, hitting $174.8 billion. That will be followed by 14.5 percent growth in 2026, with cybersecurity market spending topping $200 billion for the first time. Autonomous Attack In some ways, the resurgence in security spending stems from a new sense of urgency, as IT leaders come to realize that bad actors have access to the same AI superpowers that are driving effectiveness and efficiencies in their organizations. Indeed, many believe 2026 will see the first time that attackers achieve a fully automated security compromise, from start to finish, such as agentic AI executing the entire kill chain. “Whether it’s an autonomous AI system compromising enterprise infrastructure or AI agents leaking highly sensitive data at scale, this incident will force organizations to confront a new threat paradigm,” said Dashlane chief technology officer, Frédéric Rivain, in a company blog post. “The breach will exploit the trust we’ve placed in AI systems themselves or demonstrate AI’s ability to bypass defenses that stop human attackers.” Feeling confident that it’s your human resources director on the other end of a Zoom call asking for your password, personal information or confidential material? AI-armed attackers – with less and less technical sophistication – will utilize generative AI and deepfakes to launch incredibly convincing phishing campaigns as early as this year, experts predict, forcing organizations to rethink employee training and lock down every digital interaction. “We’re witnessing an evolution of cyberattack methods, a wholesale transformation in how adversaries operate,” said Haider Pasha, vice president and chief security officer, EMEA, for Palo Alto Networks, in the company’s recently released ”State of Cloud Security” report. The Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 research team documented a surge in daily cyberattacks from 2.3 million to up to nearly 9 million in the span of a year – an almost threefold increase driven by attackers’ adoption of AI tools, said the report. And the volume of attacks tells only part of the story. Concern also lies in velocity, said Unit 42 researchSource: SecureTrust by VikingCloud The Cost of Security Incidents Source: Netwrix How AI is Impacting Security Postures “Would you assign this task to AI or a junior colleague?” Source: Netwrix 2025 2024 2023 Perceived Fitness for High-Stakes Work Source: MIT Project NANDA AI Preferred Human Preferred Complex projects (multi-week work, client management) Quick tasks (emails, summaries, basic analysis) In your organization’s view, how soon will quantum computers achieve the capability to break current encryption methods? 90% 10% 70% 30% $0 $1-$10,000 $10,001 - $50,000 $50,001 - $200,000 $200,001 - and more 25% 40% 47% 31% 26% 20% 17% 17% 17% 14% 10% 10% 13% 7% 6% New threats: AI-driven threats have forced us to adjust our security approach New attack surface: Business uses AI, we have to protect our organization New compliance requirements: Auditors require proof of data security and privacy in AI-based systems Stronger defenses: Cybersecurity AI tools improved detection and response capabilities Not sure / too early to tell Time and effort savings: Offloaded some workload from our IT/security team to AI We implemented cybersecurity AI tools and are still assessing their impact We have not implemented AI tools, but we are considering them We have not implemented AI tools, and we don’t plan to 37% 30% 29% 28% 23% 20% 19% 30% 9% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% Source: ABBYY 9-Step PCI Compliance Checklist Source: SecureTrust by VikingCloud The Cost of Security Incidents Source: Netwrix How AI is Impacting Security Postures Source: Netwrix to improve the outputs of AI tools 2% Install a firewall and VPN Monitor and track user access requests Encrypt data while at rest and in transit Establish a foolproof update schedule Restrict cardholder data with strong password and multi-factor authentication Physically secure any premises where cardholder data is stored Run penetration tests and vulnerability scans Be clear on security policies and keep personnel up to speed Use up-to-date antivirus and anti-malware software to prevent threats 1. 6. 7. 8. 9. 2. 3. 4. 5. 2025 2024 2023 Perceived Fitness for High-Stakes Work 25% 40% 47% 31% 26% 20% 17% 17% 17% 14% 10% 10% 13% 7% 6% New threats: AI-driven threats have forced us to adjust our security approach New attack surface: Business uses AI, we have to protect our organization New compliance requirements: Auditors require proof of data security and privacy in AI-based systems Stronger defenses: Cybersecurity AI tools improved detection and response capabilities Not sure / too early to tell Time and effort savings: Offloaded some workload from our IT/security team to AI We implemented cybersecurity AI tools and are still assessing their impact We have not implemented AI tools, but we are considering them We have not implemented AI tools, and we don’t plan to 37% 30% 29% 28% 23% 20% 19% 30% 9% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 33 WINTER 2026 | CHANNELVISION
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