Introduction
Every year, experts look back at what happened in cybersecurity and predict what will happen next. This year brings some important new threats and challenges that we all need to understand. Let’s look at the biggest trends coming in 2026.
Shadow AI: The Hidden Problem
Shadow AI means artificial intelligence that no one approved. Someone downloads an AI tool into a cloud system without permission, and suddenly it’s running your business. This is a big problem.
The IBM Cost of a Data Breach Report shows that when a company has a data breach and also has shadow AI, the costs increase by $670,000. That’s a lot of extra money for one mistake.
The bigger problem? 60% of organizations don’t have any AI security or governance plan. This means companies are using AI without protection, and the risks keep growing. We need to create rules and controls for AI before using it.
Deepfakes: Fake Videos and Audio
Deepfakes use AI to create fake videos, pictures, and audio of real people doing things they never did or saying things they never said. These can be used for fun, but they can also be dangerous.
The numbers are scary:
- In 2023, experts found about 500,000 deepfakes
- In 2025, that number jumped to 8 million
- That’s a 1,500% increase in just two years
Deepfakes will keep improving, and it will be very difficult to detect them. The best defense is to train people to watch what deepfakes are asking them to do, not to try to spot fake videos.
AI-Generated Malware: Smarter Attacks
Bad actors are using AI to create malware that is smarter and more dangerous than before. AI-generated malware can be polymorphic, which means it changes itself over time to avoid detection.
This creates two problems:
- Attackers now have an easier job: They just ask AI to create malware. They don’t need to be experts anymore.
- Defenders have a harder job: The malware keeps changing, so old detection methods don’t work.
The Growing Attack Surface
Every new AI tool that companies use becomes another target for hackers. A common way to attack AI systems is called “prompt injection.” This is when someone sneaks a hidden command into text that the AI reads.
According to the OWASP organization (which tracks security problems), prompt injection was the number one threat to AI systems in both 2023 and 2025. It will likely remain a top threat going forward.
The Good News: AI Helping Defense
It’s not all bad news. AI is also being used to help protect us. Companies like IBM are creating AI tools that detect prompt injection attacks and defend against them.
In the future, we will need security systems that can change quickly to match new attacks. AI is perfect for this because it can adapt in real time.
Quantum Computing: A Future Threat
Quantum computers are very powerful machines that will be able to solve problems no regular computer can solve. But they also create a new danger.
Quantum computers will be able to break all of our current encryption and security codes. When this happens, all our old security methods will stop working.
The good news is that scientists have already created “quantum-safe cryptography” or “post-quantum cryptography” – new codes that quantum computers cannot break.
What’s happening now:
- More people are talking about quantum safety (good!)
- Very few companies are actually using the new codes (bad!)
Time is running out. Companies need to start using quantum-safe codes now, before quantum computers become powerful enough to break our current systems.
Agents: A New Problem
AI agents are programs that can work on their own without human help. You tell an agent what you want, and it does the job automatically and very quickly. This is great for business, but it also creates new security risks.
Attacks On Agents
When hackers attack an agent, it will follow their commands at super-fast speed. If an agent can access important company tools, the damage happens instantly.
One example is “zero-click attacks.” A hacker sends an email with a hidden command. The agent reads the email to summarize it, but then it follows the hacker’s hidden commands and steals data. The user never even touches the email, so they don’t know what happened.
Another problem is non-human identities. Agents need special accounts and permission levels to work. Since agents can create other agents, we now have many more accounts to track and protect. This gives hackers more targets to attack.
Attacks By Agents
Bad actors are also using agents to attack companies more effectively. Here’s what they can do:
Phishing Attacks: An AI agent can create personalized emails just for you, making them much more convincing.
Malware Creation: Agents can automatically create many different types of malware and test them to see which ones work best.
Ransomware Automation: The entire ransomware attack can be automated, from writing the attack code to collecting ransom payments.
Automated Kill Chain: An agent can do everything – find targets, test their security, build exploits, steal data, and collect payment – all without human help. It’s like “click here to hack.”
Social Engineering: Combined with deepfakes and information gathering, agents can create very convincing social engineering attacks that trick people.
AI Will Change Everything
AI will not stay in one place. It will grow into many areas:
Education: Schools will have to accept AI instead of fighting it. Students need to learn how to work with AI because that’s what jobs will require.
Art and Music: AI-generated music and art will become more common. Some will be good, some will be bad, just like human-made art.
Marketing: AI can write marketing copy, create business ideas, and plan campaigns automatically.
Programming: AI is getting very good at writing computer code. Programmers will still be needed, but there will be fewer jobs available as AI improves.
Passkeys: A Better Solution
One of the best recent security improvements is something called passkeys. These replace passwords and are much more secure and easier to use.
Passkeys are backed by big companies like Amazon, Google, Microsoft, PayPal, and TikTok. According to the FIDO Alliance (the organization behind passkeys), 93% of accounts at these companies can use passkeys, and one-third of people already have them enabled.
IBM switched all its employees to passkeys for security. This shows that passkeys actually work in real companies.
The best part? Passkeys fix the biggest cause of data breaches: phishing attacks that try to steal passwords. If you don’t have a password, hackers can’t steal it.
Quantum-Safe Cryptography: Do It Now
Here’s the prediction that matters most: quantum computers will eventually break our current security codes. When that happens, companies that didn’t prepare will suffer huge data breaches.
You can protect yourself now by switching to quantum-safe cryptography. Start planning this change today, because waiting could be very expensive.
Summary
2026 and beyond will bring both new opportunities and new dangers. The most important things to remember are:
- Control shadow AI before it controls you
- Plan for quantum computers now
- Train people to work with AI safely
- Use passkeys instead of passwords
- Watch what deepfakes ask you to do
- Understand the risks of AI agents
Security is not about stopping all change. It’s about understanding the risks and making smart choices about how we use new technology.