A recent survey conducted by Rubrik Zero Labs highlights significant security challenges posed by AI agents, with 86% of organisations expecting these systems to surpass their security guardrails within the next year. The findings suggest that AI agents, while promising efficiency, require more manual oversight than they deliver, according to more than 80% of respondents.
The survey indicates a concerning trend where agentic systems are anticipated to drive the majority of cyberattacks in the coming year. Despite the growing reliance on AI, only 23% of respondents report having full visibility into the AI agents operating within their environments. This lack of oversight is compounded by a critical deficiency in identity governance as organisations increasingly adopt autonomous systems they cannot fully observe or restore.
Non-human identities associated with AI agents are proliferating at a pace that outstrips enterprises’ ability to track or govern them, resulting in what the report describes as a ‘shadow workforce.’ Furthermore, 88% of respondents lack the capability to roll back actions taken by AI agents without causing system disruptions.
The report underscores the widespread concern among nearly nine in ten leaders about meeting recovery objectives as threats from agent-driven systems increase. Nearly half of the respondents expect these systems to be the primary drivers of attacks in the coming year.
Rubrik Zero Labs’ report combines global survey data with technical analysis of emerging attack vectors across AI systems. Rubrik, a company specialising in data protection, cyber resilience, and enterprise AI acceleration, aims to shed light on the challenges and risks associated with the rapid adoption of AI technologies.
Kavitha Mariappan, Chief Transformation Officer at Rubrik, emphasised the urgency of addressing these challenges: “We have to move past the debate of whether AI is risky and address the harder reality: as decision-making shifts from human to machine, the critical challenge for every leader is maintaining operational safety in an increasingly autonomous landscape.”
Mariappan further stated, “AI adoption is outpacing our ability to control it. Enterprises are struggling because they’ve deployed systems they can’t fully observe, govern, or restore.”
Steven Ramirez, Renown Health VP, Chief Information Security & Technology Officer, highlighted the importance of identity verification in managing AI systems: “Identity verification is the fundamental underpinning that will allow us to get the greatest automation benefits of AI without imposing human bottlenecks. Verification and visibility are prerequisites for sound, secure agentic implementation.”
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