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Having spent many years in technology marketing, I’ve seen plenty of security vendor research. Most confirms what we already know or validates whatever is being sold. So when we surveyed 100 CISOs and senior security executives about ransomware, I expected the usual: cautious optimism, carefully hedged assessments, “we’re prepared but always improving” positioning.
What we got was far more revealing, and concerning.
We discovered a confidence gap so wide, it fundamentally changes how we should think about ransomware defense. And if you’re a security leader, it probably describes your reality more accurately than you’d like to admit.
The Paradox That Stopped Me Cold
Every single respondent expressed confidence in detecting ransomware attacks. Nearly half failed despite that confidence. This isn’t about competence—these are seasoned leaders averaging 6+ years as Heads of Security, 87% with 3+ years in their current roles. Half are CISOs.
The gap isn’t expertise. It’s tools.
The EDR Trust Collapse Nobody Talks About
Then there’s the number that should make every security vendor uncomfortable:
98% of organizations use EDR for ransomware defense.
Only 25% actually trust it to defend against today’s ransomware attacks.
That’s a 73-percentage-point trust gap. Nearly universal deployment. Barely a quarter with actual confidence it works.
When 98% of your market uses a solution but only 25% trusts it, that’s not a feature problem. That’s fundamental product-market misalignment. EDR was designed for general threat detection. Ransomware is a specific business-continuity attack. Using EDR for ransomware is like using a general practitioner for brain surgery–both are doctors, but only one was purpose-built for the problem.
The AI Asymmetry Everyone Feels
We asked about AI. The responses revealed why security leaders feel behind despite massive investment:
78% say AI has made ransomware attacks more effective.
6% believe AI has improved their own defenses.
That’s a 13:1 attacker advantage. When we asked about biggest challenges for the next 12-18 months, responses were visceral:
“Prevention against AI-powered attacks, such as phishing, where realistic emails are easily generated and are very hard to detect.”
“The growing use of AI in customer-targeted scams is my biggest concern.”
Seventy-four percent say their organizations are more exposed due to AI advancements. This isn’t future anxiety, it’s present vulnerability.
What This Means
We’re releasing the full survey results because these findings matter beyond Halcyon’s interests. This is an industry-wide reckoning: security leaders are experienced and ready, but the tools they’re forced to use weren’t built for the threats they’re facing.
When 100% express confidence but nearly half fail despite it, the problem isn’t the people. When 98% use a solution but only 25% trust it, the problem isn’t implementation.
When 78% say AI helps attackers more than defenders, the problem isn’t innovation.
The problem is we’ve been treating ransomware like just another threat when it’s actually a business-continuity attack requiring purpose-built defense.
Ninety-one percent of surveyed leaders are already investing in ransomware-specific tools. They know “mostly sufficient” isn’t sufficient. They know EDR wasn’t designed for this. They know AI is changing the game.
The question is whether the rest of the market recognizes this before the next attack makes the lesson unavoidable.
Get the complete Halcyon 2026 Security Leadership Survey
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