Netwrix Cybersecurity Report 2025: One in Three Organizations Globally Adapted Their Security Architecture to Address AI-driven Threats

Top security challenges introduced by AI include new threats, new attack surface, and new compliance requirements.

FRISCO, Texas, April 23, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Netwrix, a cybersecurity provider focused on data and identity threats, today announced the release of its annual global 2025 Cybersecurity Trends Report based on a global survey of 2,150 IT and security professionals from 121 countries. It reveals that 60% of organizations are already using artificial intelligence (AI) in their IT infrastructure and 30% are considering implementing AI.

Research shows that AI has impacted organizations' security posture. 37% of respondents say that new AI-driven threats forced them to adjust their security approach, 30% report the emergence of a new attack surface due to the use of AI by their business users, and 29% struggle with compliance since auditors require proof of data security and privacy in AI-based systems. 

"Today's AI-driven business processes are vulnerable to a host of new threats that security teams must be prepared for," says Jeff Warren, Chief Product Officer at Netwrix. "The data shows a rise in security incidents that are identity-driven and infrastructure-focused.  Indeed, identity-driven attacks are likely to dominate even more, with crafty new ways to bypass MFA, abuse of machine-to-machine identities like service accounts and tokens, AI-powered deepfake voice and video phishing, and even synthetic identity creation at scale."

"AI workloads trained on proprietary enterprise data represents intellectual property and are attractive targets for cybercriminals," says Dirk Schrader, VP of Security Research at Netwrix. "It is important to secure data across the entire AI lifecycle, from ingestion to model training to monitoring API endpoints for any signs of prompt injection, abuse or model leakage. Finally, security teams should apply Zero Trust principles in the world of AI: assume every interaction with the AI system, internal or external, could be malicious, and enforce strict authentication, least privilege access and continuous monitoring."

In this year's survey, we investigated incidents that demanded a dedicated response from security teams, rather than those that were automatically detected and remediated. Based on this definition, 51% of respondents confirmed experiencing a security incident in the past 12 months. The number of organizations reporting no impact from security incidents is shrinking rapidly, from 45% in 2023 to just 36% in 2025. 75% of respondents reported financial damage due to attacks — a significant increase from 60% in 2024. The number of organizations estimating their damage at $200,000 or more nearly doubled, from 7% to 13%.

"Direct breach costs are well understood, but more subtle costs include intellectual property loss, product development delays, and reputational damage, which are all hard to quantify but can be devastating, especially if innovation is essential to the business model," added Warren. "Breaches damage brand trust, and customer churn often peaks when the time comes to renew the contract — well after the immediate crisis seems resolved."

For more information about the most common types of security incidents, organizational IT priorities, cyber insurance trends and more, download the report here.

About Netwrix

Netwrix champions cybersecurity to ensure a brighter digital future for any organization. Netwrix's innovative solutions safeguard data, identities, and infrastructure reducing both the risk and impact of a breach for more than 13,500 organizations across 100+ countries. Netwrix empowers security professionals to face digital threats with confidence by enabling them to identify and protect sensitive data as well as to detect, respond to, and recover from attacks.

For more information, visit www.netwrix.com.

CONTACT:

Erin Jones
Avista PR for Netwrix
P: 704.664.2170
E: pr@netwrix.com

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