Survey finds security checks nearly doubled in a year as leaders wise up

The number of organizations that have implemented methods for identifying security risks in the AI tools they use has almost doubled in the space of a year.

Nearly two-thirds (64 percent) of all business leaders who participated in the World Economic Forum's (WEF) Global Cybersecurity Outlook 2026 said that they assessed AI tools' security risks before deploying them.

The finding represents a steep rise compared with last year's 37 percent figure, and underlines how much of a priority AI security has become for organizations worldwide.

Nearly all respondents (94 percent) said that AI will be the most significant driver of cybersecurity change in 2026, and 87 percent believe that the associated vulnerabilities have increased – more than any other type of threat.

It's true that The Reg was busy last year covering AI vulnerabilities. Prompt injections were the main culprits – there were lots of them – while AI code ...