Cyber Security in 2026

Cyber Security in 2026: What we expect to see

Cyber security in 2026 won’t be defined by one big breakthrough attack or a single new regulation.

More technology. More suppliers. More remote access. More automation. And, inevitably, more opportunity for mistakes. Oh and then there is that AI thing.

For UK organisations of all sizes, the next 12–24 months will be about operational maturity, not chasing the latest shiny tool. The winners won’t be the most paranoid or the biggest spenders. They’ll be the most prepared, most pragmatic and most joined-up.

While we cannot fully predict what this year holds here’s what we believe will play a real part in cyber and UK business in 2026.

AI Has Changed Attacks — But Also the Defence

AI is no longer emerging. It’s embedded.

Attackers are using AI to:

• Write highly contextual phishing emails
• Mimic internal language and branding
• Launch faster, more targeted campaigns at scale

At the same time, defenders are leaning on AI to:

• Detect abnormal behaviour in real time
• Prioritise genuine risk over background noise
• Automate first-line response before damage spreads

The reality? AI has raised the baseline on both sides.

Security now depends less on spotting obvious threats and more on identifying what doesn’t look right inside everyday business activity.

What this means for businesses:
Static rules and manual review can’t keep up. Intelligent monitoring and rapid response are now essential, not advanced.

Managed Security Is How Most Organisations Are Coping

One of the clearest patterns we are confident in seeing in 2026 is this: Even strong internal IT teams are reaching capacity.

24/7 monitoring, vulnerability management, alert triage, incident response, platform optimisation — these aren’t occasional tasks anymore. They’re continuous.

As a result, managed security services have become the norm, not the exception:

• SMEs gain enterprise-level capability without enterprise headcount or cost
• Mid-market firms avoid burnout and skills gaps
• Larger organisations stabilise their security operations

This isn’t about outsourcing responsibility. It’s about owning outcomes while sharing the operational load and increasing overall security.

What’s changed:
Businesses now judge security partners on visibility, responsiveness, and trust — not just technology.

People Remain the Primary Target — and the Best Defence

Humans are and still will be the number one target.

In 2026, the most successful organisations are no longer relying on annual training or generic videos. They’re building ongoing, behaviour-focused awareness and making a shift in actual culture:

• Short, regular interactions
• Realistic scenarios
• Enjoyable education
• Clear feedback without blame
• A real in this together culture

When staff shift from a huge risk to a line of defence it rapidly increases overall security. We talk about the culture shift a lot, why? Because it matters now more than ever.

The shift we’re seeing:
Cyber awareness is being treated as a business skill — just like health & safety or data protection — not an IT initiative.

Email and Cloud Platforms Are Still the Front Line

Despite advances elsewhere, email and cloud services remain the most exploited attack surface.

They’re:

• Always accessible
• Business-critical
• Integrated across suppliers, customers, and staff

What’s changed is how organisations protect them.

There’s a clear move towards layered security that combines:

• Threat prevention
• Behavioural detection
• Fast remediation when something slips through

Relying solely on default platform settings is no longer enough — and most businesses now know it.

The winners:
Those treating email and cloud as high-risk operational systems, not “just IT tools”.

Continuous Exposure Visibility Beats Annual Assessments

Cyber risk changes weekly — sometimes daily.

New users. New devices. New cloud services. New vulnerabilities.

That’s why forward-thinking organisations are moving away from one-off testing and towards continuous exposure management:

• Knowing what assets exist right now
• Understanding which vulnerabilities matter most
• Focusing effort where it reduces real business risk

This approach isn’t about chasing zero risk. It’s about making informed decisions, quickly.