Cybersecurity and business needs: A CISO's 2026 outlook

Uncover the 2026 cybersecurity predictions, trends, tools and strategies CISOs need to navigate evolving business and threat landscapes.

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• Sharon Shea, Executive Editor

CISOs have a lot on their plate -- and it's only going to get fuller in the coming year.

The role traditionally defined as a threat defender has evolved to include that of a business strategist. Where once CISOs mitigated attacks, performed incident response and ensured compliance, they now handle their traditional CISO tasks, are starting to own IT and CIO-level processes, and must balance cybersecurity requirements with business needs.

Today's CISOs must defend networks and proactively mitigate risks. They must be technically savvy while also translating cyber-risk to the board. They must have technical, strategic and business acumen to be successful at their jobs.

Yet the threat landscape grows increasingly more complex and challenging as sophisticated threats and adversaries discover ...