The AI Exposure Gap: The Growing Security Risk Your Company Might Not Know About

With the rapid expansion of enterprises adopting Artificial Intelligence technologies, a critical security challenge emerges, known as the "AI Exposure Gap". This gap refers to the increasing divide between rapid AI innovation and cybersecurity practices that fail to keep pace. Research has revealed that 89% of organizations are currently operating or experimenting with AI solutions, yet 34% of them have already experienced AI-related security breaches.

The Nature of AI Security Vulnerabilities

The findings reveal that these breaches are not primarily attributed to weaknesses in AI models themselves, but rather to security vulnerabilities within organizations. The most common attacks involve exploiting software vulnerabilities (21%) and insider threats (18%), while flaws in AI models pose a risk of (19%).

Experts clarify that the real risks stem from familiar exposure points such as identity governance, misconfigurations, and traditional security vulnerabilities, rather than from science fiction scenarios. This is because companies are rapidly integrating AI faster than they can secure it, leading to fragmented security visibility across different systems. As a result, companies tend to implement reactive defenses to deal with breaches after they occur, instead of proactively securing their systems.

Current Security Practices: Shortcomings and Reliance on Minimum Standards

Studies show that only one in five companies fully encrypts its AI data, leaving 78% of this data vulnerable to attack if systems are compromised. Approximately half of companies (51%) rely on frameworks such as the NIST AI Risk Management Framework or the EU AI Act to guide their security strategies, indicating they might only be meeting minimum requirements.

Recommendations for Addressing the Security Exposure Gap

Furthermore, only 26% of companies conduct dedicated AI security tests, such as red-teaming exercises. Therefore, companies are advised to prioritize fundamental controls like identity governance, misconfiguration monitoring, securing workloads, and access management. Compliance with security standards should be a starting point for establishing a robust and comprehensive security posture, not the ultimate goal itself.